


Mark of the Chosen

by KittyRouge



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Allura didnt die, Altean Lance (Voltron), Another Space Adventure, BAMF Lance, But no one dies, Canon Compliant, Canon Typical Violence, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, First fic sooo, Galra Keith, Lance (Voltron)-centric, M/M, Minor injury mentions, Oblivious Lance (Voltron), Other, Past Allurance mentions, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Slow Burn, Voltron Reunion, a lil angst, blade of marmora, post-s8, post-season 8, she ascended, will update tags as we go on
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-05-02
Packaged: 2019-10-28 10:52:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 25,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17786024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KittyRouge/pseuds/KittyRouge
Summary: Lance looked around him as if a part of him still believed he would see Blue, or even Red, somewhere in the distance. But he knew he said goodbye to them for good almost a year ago. The lions were connected to Allura’s life force, and with Allura no longer around and the universe relatively at peace, the lions gave their goodbyes and left too.---------------------------------------It all started with a dream, a dream that kept repeating. Lance knew that this wasn't simply a dream, it was a message. A message that he wouldn't be able to decipher alone.





	1. Just dreams?

_‘This is a dream. There is no way she would be here’,_ Lance thinks to himself, squinting at the shadowy figure of Allura standing in front of him. She seems to be saying something to him, but the words reach his ears muffled and making no sense to him.

       “Allura! Wait,” He calls out to Allura’s figure as it begins to fade, getting further and further out of reach from him. Lance does his best to reach out to her, seeing her even in his dream causing his heart to feel that familiar empty ache. Just as he takes a few steps closer to her, he finds himself falling endlessly in a void that reminds him of his time out in space as a Paladin. He sees a distant beacon of white light getting larger and larger the longer he falls, when suddenly his body jerks awake and he is left panting from the rude awakening. He grabs his phone and sees that it’s really early in the day, just past 5 AM.

       Lance thinks back to the dream he just woke up from, not really knowing if it felt more like an honest nightmare or just distorted memories. ‘ _Whatever it was, it was only a dream’._ He sighs to himself, and starts getting ready for the day. He could spend a few moments in the farm this early, and then he has some work to do with Pidge at the Garrison, and a few classes he had to show up to for a sharing session of what it was like to be a Defender of the Universe. A little dream like that won’t even cross his mind once his day goes on full swing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

       Lance was right, the dream didn’t cross his mind that day or the following days either, but around a week after the first dream, a similar dream crept into his sleep-heavy head. This dream had a different feeling to it, there was no shock or confusion at seeing Allura’s shadowy figure, no empty heart ache either. Instead there was a sense of urgency, as if he needed to understand what Allura was saying, but he just couldn’t get it no matter how hard he tried to focus. It was like listening from underwater and he felt a suffocating frustration grow. He woke up much the same as the first time, the beam of white light the last thing he sees.

       The dreams kept coming, more frequently as the weeks pass by, until they were plaguing his sleep every night of the week. The feeling of urgency kept growing with each dream he had, and with it the frustration grew too until it felt like it followed him beyond his sleep. Finally, during the ninth consecutive night of having the dream, something changed. As he fell, like he always did, he saw dots of purple around him instead of the usual bright spots of distant stars and systems in the galaxy. The closer he got to one of those dots, the clearer it became until he was close enough to make out what it was. A juniberry flower.

       Lance woke up with a calm resolution blanketing his body. He knew what he needed to do and where he needed to be. He knew without a doubt that it was a little crazy to travel so far without a guarantee that he’ll find his answers, or if there are any answers to be found at all to begin with. That’s the thing, he knew he needed to contact Coran and he needed to be in New Altea as soon as possible, he just didn’t really know why. _‘What if it really is just a dream? Your mind just playing tricks on your memories of the past?’_ Doubts, festering inside him like a disease beyond his control.

 _‘No.’_ Memories of the juniberry flower helped strengthen his resolve. His gut told him that he needed to do as he planned, and Lance trusts his gut. It was what triggered his crazy space adventure all those years ago when he first met the Blue Lion, it was what kept him going when the fights seemed impossible, and it was what got him to where he was today. _‘Yeah, I’m definitely headed to Altea.’_ He grabbed some of his essentials and stuffed them in a bag pack, got dressed, left a quick note to his family, and was out of the door when he realised a significant detail that he overlooked when he was planning his trip. He no longer had a lion to fly him there.

       Lance looked around him as if a part of him still believed he would see Blue, or even Red, somewhere in the distance. But he knew he said goodbye to them for good almost a year ago. The lions were connected to Allura’s life force, and with Allura no longer around and the universe relatively at peace, the lions gave their goodbyes and left too.

 _‘C’mon Lance, think! What would Pidge do in this situation?’_ Lance tried to put himself in Pidge’s place and come up with a solution to get to Altea as soon as he can. Minutes passed by when it suddenly occurred to him, _‘Right, I could just ask her instead of imagining what she would actually do’._ A sheepish eye roll and a quick glance at the time on his phone, just past 7 AM which is acceptable, then he was dialling Pidge up in hopes of some sort of miracle.

       “Why Lance? Why do you do this to me?” Pidge’s hoarse voice was heard over the line, groaning her woes which left Lance more confused than his dreams did.

       “Uhh, is this a bad time Pidge?” He honestly has no idea what he’s doing to her, wracking his brain for memories of their last meeting a few days ago. Things were fine, nothing really happened. Sure, a few jokes from Lancey Lance and a few minor distractions here and there, but nothing that would seriously upset Pidge. _‘Right?’_

       “It’s too damn early to be awake and functioning Lance. Not all of us are morning people, you know?” There was no real heat in her words, but it still didn’t make things clearer for Lance.

       “Aren’t you usually up and about around now Pidge? Meetings to attend, lectures to teach, projects to work on?”

       “Not on a Sunday, Lance.” Pidge chuckled, guessing that Lance was too caught up in whatever he was thinking about to realise the time and day.

       “Crap, I’m so sorry. I guess I’m a little distracted today heh” Lance began apologising, when Pidge cut him off, reassuring him it was actually fine and she didn’t really mind.

       “What’s got you so distracted? Did something happen that you needed to talk to me so early? Oh God, Lance are you okay??” Everything they went through together easily left them as a family, and the usually logical and practical genius Pidge worried when it came to her family.

       “Oh no, it’s just one of those dreams again,” he hesitated, but Pidge’s curious hum kept him going. “Allura wasn’t any clearer, and I didn’t catch what she was saying again either. But this time, when I fell, I didn’t see the white beam of light. I saw a juniberry flower instead.” Lance waited for Pidge to process and hopefully understand where he was going with this.

       “Lance, are you planning on going to Altea?” Pidge sounded strangely calm, as if it were a normal thing to do, like going to the nearby park instead of flying galaxies away because of a dream.

       “Yeah, I am.” was all Lance could say. He waited again for her to lecture him with how illogical and impractical he was being. Instead, he was surprised.

       “I’m coming with you.” She said quickly, then hesitantly added, “May I?”

       “Wait, what?”

       “It’s fine if you don’t want me to go with you Lance, its just that it’s been almost a year since we were there, and the last time we were there was bittersweet. The lions left, and I kinda miss Coran. Heck, I missed the time we all spent together in space when our lives weren’t in any immediate danger. And all the memories we made, and just the people. And I just-” Pidge was rambling. Pidge rarely ever rambled. Lance immediately understood what she meant. She ached for the good times, probably just as much as Lance did, probably even more.

      “Of course you can come with me Pidgeon!” he cut her off quickly, saving her from her rambling. “I was just surprised you wanted to come along. What about work and stuff?”

       “I’ll clear the week with the Garrison, and I’ll let Matt and my parents know what to do about the projects. We should let Shiro know too, he might want to join us.” The sound of movement and packing was clear from Pidge’s side, she must have been just as excited as Lance was. “Oh, by the way, how are we going to Altea, Lance?” it sounded like it just occurred to her, as an afterthought just like it did to Lance.

       “Well, that’s kind of why I called you. Do you have any ideas on how we could go?” Lance chuckled, realising how spontaneous they were being.

       Pidge laughed, probably realising the same thing too. “Alright, alright. We can use my private pod, it’s parked at the Garrison and I have clearance for it.”

       Lance’s relief only made his excitement double, and it suddenly felt like he was going home after a long time away. He softly added, “We should ask Hunk and Keith too.”

       “Hunk’s away teaching cooking in another galaxy, but I think its not too far from Altea though. We can let him know once we’re out.”

       “And Keith?” Lance knew there was a pretty slim chance of him being on Earth, but it wouldn’t be right to make sure he wasn’t accidentally left behind.

       “Marmora business, they dropped by Earth for a few hours a couple of days ago. We didn’t get to catch up much, he was in a hurry to answer a nearby distress signal.”

       “Oh, okay” Lance ignored the pang of disappointment that went through him. “Hey, Pidge? Thanks” Lance added softly, “for trusting me and helping me with this trip.”

      “It’s no trouble Lance,” she laughed lightly. “I think you’re right about following the message in your dream, maybe you’ll find out what you need to know in Altea. I’m pretty excited about going to Altea too for no reason, so yeah.” Lance knew she had a reason to be excited to go to Altea, he knew she most probably felt how he felt too.

       “Yeah, me too Pidgeon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any and all feedback will be greatly appreciated! Most of the story has been outlined, so it just need to be written out and elaborated on. Updates should be pretty frequent. And if anyone wants to have a chat, sure! Just hit me up on instagram @KittyRouge_


	2. Bonds and Wormholes

“It’s great that you’re coming with us, Shiro.” Lance called out once he saw Shiro loading his things up in Pidge’s pod that they were taking to Altea.

       “Thanks for the invite, Pidge filled me in on your dreams and the reason for this trip. Are you alright, Lance?” The concern was clear in Shiro’s voice, and Lance knew that losing Allura was really hard on Shiro too. It was hard on everyone, but it seems that you can’t end a war without having to make sacrifices.

       “Yeah man, I’m fine.” Lance kept his tone light, not wanting to start their trip on a sad note. “It’s just these dreams feel like they’re more than dreams, you know? Like there’s a message I’m just not catching.”

       Shiro glanced at Lance for a while before releasing a sigh and giving Lance a small smile. “Well, I hope you find out what you need to in Altea.” His smile turned into a larger, more understanding smile when he said, “And Lance, if you ever need someone to talk to, or to vent, just know that I’m here for you. Okay buddy?”

       Lance smiled and nodded at that, realising again just how strong the bond was between all of them. Thinking of their bonds to each other led him to think about Keith. Out of the whole team, Lance had spent the least time with Keith once the war ended and the aftermath was dealt with. Sure, Keith had a lot going on. With the transitioning of the Blade of Marmora into a humanitarian relief organisation, and the Galran’s settling back in Daibazaal and re-establishing order, he was a pretty busy guy. It’s not like Lance misses him or anything, he just didn’t expect to notice how obvious the lack of Keith was in his life.

       “Earth to Lance?” Pidge’s hand waving in front of his face startled him enough to cause him to jump in his seat and release a surprised squawk.

       “Oh God, Pidge please don’t do that,” was all Lance could say as he was cut off by Pidge’s barely contained laughter. Even Shiro seemed to be holding back his laughs, a few chuckles escaping him regardless.

      “Sorry Lance, it’s just that you were frowning into empty space and you didn’t even react to me calling you.” Pidge wasn’t completely recovered from her mirth and didn’t sound sorry at all, and the scowl growing on Lance’s face just made her want to laugh even more.

      “And how is that funny to you guys?” Lance wasn’t really annoyed. No, he was flustered. Embarrassed at being caught red handed frowning over his lack of seeing or hearing from Keith. _‘It isn’t  like not seeing Keith bothers me. And it’s not like they even know I was thinking of him! Nothing to be embarrassed about here.’_

       Lance’s mental pep talk was cut short by Shiro’s quiet chuckle and statement. “Well, you whispered Keith’s name and started frowning while Pidge was talking to us.”

_‘Please let me die a quick death now.’_ Lance was frantically searching for a way to explain, but Shiro saved him the trouble by asking Pidge to repeat what she was saying. Lance shot him a mental thanks and paid attention to what Pidge was about to say.

       “So, I’ve contacted Coran to let him know we’re headed to Altea for a visit. I’ve also told him a little about your dreams, but you’ll have to let him know the details when we get there.” She looked at Lance, then turned to look at Shiro. “The Garrison is aware of our journey and the time all three of us will be away. Matt or Veronica will contact us if they need to, and we’ll be able to keep in contact with Earth from Altea as well. Also, the Teludav at the Garrison is under a small system maintenance. It’s working enough to jump us a few hours outside of Altea’s atmosphere, and the pod will take us the rest of the way.” It’s great that Pidge decided to follow along, making all the necessary explanations and clearances smoother than Lance would have.

     “Coran told us to stay for a few days, so I hoped you guys packed enough. The Alteans will be able to wormhole us back whenever necessary now that they have reintroduced Altean alchemy and sciences. And I think that covers just about everything.” Pidge looked surprised as she finished saying this, as if the preparations getting done made room for all the excitement to come back full force. All three of them looked around the pod, and outside to the small crowd sending them off.

       The familiar sight of a wormhole opening overhead sent a rush of emotion through Lance, excitement, nervousness, and even a resolute calm all bubbled beneath his skin. He didn’t know if Pidge or Shiro felt how he did, but it was clear they each had their own waves of emotions playing inside them, and their own reasons for wanting to go on this journey with him.

       “Are you ready?” Pidge called out from her pilot’s seat, her grin a tell-tale sign of her excitement.

      Shiro and Lance both answered with hums of agreements and smiles on their faces. With a last wave goodbye to the crowd below, and Lance’s determination to find answers in Altea, they set off for the wormhole.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, criticism, comments, and kudos are greatly appreciated. I'm also on instagram @KittyRouge_ if anyone wants to have a chat :)


	3. Unexpected Arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio arrive in Altea, and receive some unexpected news?

“No luck reaching him again, he must be on a mission with his unit.” Pidge said as she ended the third attempt at contacting Keith, just as they entered Altea’s atmosphere. Shiro and Lance hummed in response, not really surprised by the fact that Keith was most likely on another mission.

       “Well, at least we got to talk to Hunk and now he’ll be joining us later today,” Shiro spoke up as they got closer to the ground. “It’s been awhile since I last saw him.”

       “Me too, I hope he brings food from his travels for us, I miss his cooking skills. Even with alien ingredients, Hunk’s a culinary genius.” Pidge added playfully, honestly just happy to see him after so long.

       “You mean especially with alien ingredients, right Pidge? Seriously though, if you could take over the universe using food, Hunk would be ruling over us all without breaking a sweat.” Lance chuckled at how serious Shiro sounded when he said this, knowing that the joke still carried truth inside it. That’s just how great Hunk’s cooking was doing, slowly but surely he was building a culinary empire and everyone was just really proud of him.

       Lance looked around outside the pod window until they were close enough to the ground for him to spot the familiar statue of Allura, overlooking the surrounding beauty of Altea. Beyond the grief that he felt at her loss was an overwhelming sense of pride. She made her sacrifice so that all realities would survive, and it was something that she wouldn’t have been able to do if it wasn’t for the strength and love that she had inside her.

       His heart ached, but he understood her. He knew he’d do the same in her place if he could. He looked beside him to see Pidge and Shiro with similar sad smiles on their faces, both looking at the statue of Allura. Shiro broke the silence, pointing to the landing bay they were headed to. “Is that a Galra ship? It looks like one of the Blade’s ships,” he was pointing to what was almost definitely a Marmoran ship.

       “Yeah, it looks just like the one Keith was on the last time he dropped by Earth.” There was confusion in Pidge’s voice, since members of the Blade of Marmora were known to not be particularly sociable. Contact usually meant business, and visits anywhere were rare unless they really had some time to spare or things were urgent. Lance’s stomach did a flip at the thought that something urgent has come up again.

_‘It’s probably just a visit right? Nothing to worry about, no urgent matter to deal with.’_ Lance reasoned with himself, not wanting to get worked up over nothing. He couldn’t help but worry a little at the thought that it was something urgent, and he was no longer able to help much without his lion.

       “That’s Acxa!” Pidge exclaimed as she landed the pod in a spot beside the Marmoran ship. “She’s in Keith’s unit.” She whispered, worry and curiosity lacing her words.

        Lance couldn’t see Acxa clearly, his mind already out of focus at the thought of seeing Keith so soon. His excitement grew at the idea of the team being back together, and a wave of nervousness washed over him when he thought of Keith. _‘There’s nothing to be nervous about, it’s just Keith. After all we’ve been through, some time apart won’t make us less than friends, right?’_ He tried to calm himself, but a small part of him was still nervous that their lack of contact would have erased their bond. The idea of them not being friends probably hurt Lance more than he would ever admit.

        Lance was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Shiro’s urgent tone as the pod door opened. “We’ll come back for our things later, let’s find out what happened.”

        Pidge rushed past Lance to join Shiro as he climbed out of the pod and headed to the Marmoran ship, Keith’s unit’s ship. He focused on the ship, trying to understand their urgency. A cold chill ran down his spine when he saw the state of the ship, and the few Blade members standing around it. The ship was clearly damaged, dents and scorch marks deep and angry in the metal littered it’s surface. The skid marks on the landing bay that led to the where the ship was parked gave a clue to the less than smooth landing it must have had. With Keith possibly piloting the ship, it was enough reason to believe the damage was just as bad as it looked if not even worse.

       The scattered crew looked worse for wear, exhausted and clearly caught off guard by whatever happened to them. Acxa was approaching Pidge and Shiro just as Lance reached them, where they were standing shocked as they took in the ship’s condition. The trio turned to Acxa just as she arrived by them and took in her state. She had a weary expression that contrasted her usually serious and collected demeanour, but she didn’t look seriously injured. A few scratches and possibly a few bruises, but she seemed alright enough to walk around and talk. Lance’s worry grew when he noticed that Keith wasn’t there to greet them with her.

        “Are you alright? What happened??” Shiro barely controlled the agitation seeping into his words.

      “I’m fine, my injuries are minor and have been looked over by the Altean healers.” Acxa sounded calmer than she looked, but it did little to soothe the worry they were feeling. “We were attacked during one of our stops nearby Planet Altea, on our way back to Daibazaal. There was a distress signal, and when we landed to respond, we were caught off guard and attacked.” She looked around at the crew that were being tended to by the small team of Alteans. “Most of us managed to get aboard the ship without much injury, but our ship was continuously attacked even after we took off.”

       “Most of you?” The look of horror on Pidge’s face contrasted her soft whisper of the question. Acxa looked away, unable to meet eyes with any of the humans. 

       “Where’s Keith?” The question came out harsher than Lance intended, but he didn’t care at that point, he just needed to see that stupid mullet safe.

       “Keith was very protective as our unit leader, he was the first one out of the ship and the last one to get back on. He distracted the attackers until he was sure the rest of us were boarded. I’m sorry-”

_‘Was?’_ Lance cut her off at the thought, her explanation only fuelling his frustration and worry. “Where is Keith?” He ground out each word, desperate for a solid answer and his brain ran through every possible worst case scenario. All of which only made him less and less restrained. He looked around for the familiar face once, twice, and the third time had him admitting that Keith really wasn’t there.

       His heart fell, then started hammering all over again as he felt the final stretch of his patience snap. He was about to lash out at Acxa, all thoughts of reasoning taking a vacation, when he felt the weight of Shiro’s hand on his right shoulder.

       “Calm down, Lance. Let her explain.” Shiro’s voice, although clearly worried, was firm and left no room for argument. “We’re all worried, but we need to be patient. We need to be able to focus.”

       Lance looked to Shiro, his face a mask of determination and strength. But Lance could see the worry simmering underneath all that strength, worry over the state of his adoptive brother, worry over the appearance of a new threat. Then Lance looked to his other side, where Pidge stood with her face pale, eyes glassy, and a frown pulling the corners of her lips down. Shiro was right, he needed to calm down. _‘But Keith-,’_ He needed to focus on what happened, he needed to hear Acxa out.

        He took a few deep breaths to calm down before opening his mouth to speak. “I’m sorry for cutting you off, Acxa. Please tell us what happened from the beginning.” Acxa looked at him with something akin to guilt, then nodded and started her retelling of the events.

      Shiro paid attention to what Acxa had to say, pushing his own worries aside as the threat of a new enemy took priority. Pidge was mostly listening, unable to give her undivided attention when the questions of Keith’s whereabouts were still left unanswered, his condition still unclear.   

       And Lance? Lance completely tuned out. His attempts at paying attention were pointless, when his brain decided that nothing mattered more in that moment than finding out if Keith was hurt. _‘Hell, I can accept if he got hurt, as long as I can be sure he’s alive.’_

       That last thought left him aching. He couldn’t lose Keith, he couldn’t stand to lose anyone at all right now. Keith is surely alive. He’s a stubborn hot-head that’s smart and strong, he definitely survived. _‘Right?’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, any and all feedback would be greatly appreciated as this is my first fan fic :D   
> Come find me on instagram @KittyRouge_ if you wanna have a chat!


	4. Familiar faces

“Welcome back paladins, it’s great to see you all so soon.” Coran greets them once the former paladins had heard Acxa’s story, and were ushered to the palace’s dining room to meet with Coran. Acxa and the rest of Keith’s unit were escorted to guest rooms for them to rest in the palace before they continue their journey back to Daibazaal. 

       “We’re no longer paladins, Coran. The lions are gone.” Shiro quietly adds, his tone light despite the weight of his statement.

       “Ah, but once a paladin, always a paladin, Shiro.” Coran smiles warmly, easing the solemn atmosphere that clouded the room. “And you all should know, the lions may no longer be here with you, but that does not mean your bonds with them are broken.”

       Lance looked up at Coran, realising how he seemed to almost always know how to ease the hurt or grief of those around him. Despite all that he has been through, and all that he had lost, Coran still managed to have the strength to help rebuild his home planet. The history of Altea, its cultures, traditions, and technology, were not completely lost thanks to him. Lance could only hope that Coran has found the peace and happiness that he truly deserves.

       “I’m sure you’re all worried, but I have checked on him myself before I got here. He was almost completely healed when I left, and should be able to join us shortly.” Coran informed the trio, sensing their distress from the looks on their faces. The remaining tension was lifted from the atmosphere and the relief felt like a physical presence.

       Lance felt such overwhelming relief that he barely registered Hunk’s arrival. It took Coran’s loud and cheerful greeting for him to realise that the rest had stood up and walked over to Hunk to welcome him. He was the last to arrive and was happy to see that Hunk was still Hunk. The giant bear hug he received was exactly how he remembered it, and despite not really seeing each other for almost a year, they still felt like best friends.

       Hunk let Lance down and his expression was confused as he looked around the room. “Keith isn’t here? I saw Acxa and a few Marmorans on my way here, I assumed he would be here too.”

       Four pairs of eyes looked at each other as a flicker of the worry and tension flashed in the room. “Keith is in a healing pod right now, and he’ll be joining us once he is out.” Coran broke the silence, keeping his tone light and optimistic.

       “We don’t know the full details of what happened, Acxa gave us a brief retelling but insisted it would be better if we heard it from Keith instead.” Pidge cut in before Hunk could ask any more questions. “Honestly, she was right. I was so worried that I couldn’t really pay attention to what she was even saying.”

       Lance looked at the worry written all over Hunk’s face and wondered if he had looked like that too. Almost two years since the war ended and a year since the lions left, yet the relationships between all of them still felt close. The thought of anyone of them getting hurt, now that the war was over and the coalition was actively working towards peace and recovery, seemed like too cruel a joke for the universe to play on them. Yet, there they were, with Keith in a healing pod.

       His thoughts were interrupted by Shiro telling Hunk what Acxa had relayed to them. Lance didn’t really pay attention, knowing they’ll get the full story from Keith if he gets out of the healing pod. _‘When! When he gets out!’_ He knows Keith will be fine, it’s Keith after all.

       As if reading his mind, Hunk quietly speaks a moment after Shiro finished. “He’ll be fine, right? I mean, come on, its Keith.” He looks around to everyone’s faces, as if needing some sort of confirmation. Coran simply nods, understanding the worry everyone feels.

       “Say Coran, do you think we could get the blueprints for the healing pods and adapt it to suit Earth?” Pidge chimed in, her tone now completely curious.

       “Of course you can get the blueprints, and I’m sure you’ll be able to work on adapting it for Earth with some of our engineers while you’re here. I’m proud to say that the Altean colony reintroduced here have many bright minds, quickly learning and improving on the ways of Altean engineering and alchemy.” Pidge looked impressed and excited at what Coran had to say, the thought of the already advanced technology they had on the castle-ship being further improved sparked her gleeful curiosity. Coran continued, happy to see his people’s work appreciated. “In fact, the current design for the healing pods have better efficiency compared to the ones we had in the Castle of Lions. Healing times have shortened significantly now.”

       “What about the healing process itself? Is it better?” Hunk asked, everyone sitting around the table was now paying attention to the conversation, curious about healing pods that had saved most of their lives during the war.

       “Well, I can’t really say if it’s better, since there hasn’t really been a need for anyone to use the pods. Even the few who have used the pods can’t tell me the difference, as they have never used the old pods.”

       “The healing process is fine, maybe a little more comfortable.”

      Everyone turned to look at Keith standing by the entrance of the dining room, a small tired smile on his face. A few moments of silence passed, before conversations erupted and Keith was surrounded by Shiro, Hunk, Pidge, and Coran.

       Shiro was the first to hug Keith, words of relief streaming out of his mouth in rapid fire. Pidge was next, and Hunk decided he couldn’t wait so he picked them both up in a group hug. Coran simply happily patted Keith’s shoulder, not wanting to overwhelm him.

       And Lance? Lance just stood up from where he was sitting, too shocked and relieved to move. He wanted to give Keith a hug, to reassure himself once and for all that he was alive and fine, but his body simply refused to cooperate. _‘Would he even be okay with me hugging him? What if it weirds him out? It’s been a while since we even talked to each other, what if he doesn’t see me as a friend? What if he already forgot me like he did the first time?’_

       Lance’s thoughts were spiralling to the point of being ridiculous, and he was aware of that. He didn’t have a reason to be so nervous, yet his body seemed to be frozen in place, unable to make a move towards the group. So it was a surprise to everyone, even himself, when he suddenly launched himself at Keith, nearly sending both of them toppling to the ground from the force of his hug. Apparently all it took to get him moving was eye contact, a soft smile, and an even softer “Lance?” from Keith.

       “Woah buddy, miss me huh?” Keith chuckled into Lance’s shoulder, returning the hug just as tightly.

       “Yeah, I do.” Lance immediately pulled back, and took a few steps back when he realised what he did and said. “Don’t miss your mullet though.” That would have probably been more effective at deflecting his sudden awkwardness if he wasn’t currently blushing so hard.

       “Well, too bad. I miss you too.” The sincerity in his voice only managed to make Lance blush harder, all the way to the tips of his ears. “I’ve missed everyone, things have been really busy.” Keith addressed the group as everyone began taking their seats again.

       “Alright, let’s have dinner first before we discuss what needs to be discussed.” Coran announced, a few Altean servers placing dishes in front of each paladin. “By the way Hunk, our chef thanks you for the recipe of this dish. She heard you were visiting us today, and wanted to have your opinion on her remake of one of your famous recipes.”

       “It will be my pleasure, Coran. I’d like to meet her after our dinner, to give her my feedback and to personally thank her.” Hunk replied as everyone began to dig into their food. It was delicious, even if Hunk wasn’t the one who cooked it, his style could still be tasted in the dish.

       Lance looked to his left, where Keith was seated. Sitting beside Keith allowed him to check him over for any unhealed injuries, which thankfully there weren’t any. _‘So why isn’t he eating? Maybe there’s some leftover internal damage? Maybe-’_

       Keith cut off his train of thought when he caught the way Lance was staring at him. “I’m fine, Lance. Stop worrying and start eating.” He sounded exasperated, but there was a hint of agitation in his tone.

       “Why aren’t you eating? Are you sure you’re fine?” Lance shot back, sounding annoyed despite actually being concerned.

      The rest of the table paid attention to them both now. Keith sighed, not wanting to worry anyone. “I need to know if my crew are fine. It doesn’t feel right to sit and eat when I haven’t checked on how they’re doing and if they’ve eaten.” He pushed his food around, not making eye contact with anyone.

_‘Oh. He really does suit being a leader.’_

       “Haha, thanks Lance. But not really, I’m just concerned” Keith’s reply made him almost choke on his dinner.

 _‘I can’t believe I said that out loud. Failing at social interactions, great.’_ Lance just shrugged, not trusting himself to use words just yet.

      “Well, don’t you worry number 4. Your crew members have been looked over and treated, food has been served to them, and they’ve been given rooms to rest.” Coran informed, allowing Keith to finally relax and start eating.

       “Acxa is compiling surveillance footage and information on what happened during the attack from your ship. And Krolia is on the way here.” Shiro added.

       “Yeah, there’s a lot to discuss.” Keith replied, and the meal went on, quiet chatter filling the space as they ate. It was a while before Keith put his fork down, brows furrowed in confusion. “Wait, why are you all here?”

       Everyone turned to look at Lance, who then looked at Keith. “There’s a lot to discuss.”

 


	5. Friend and foe?

“So, you think these dreams are some kind of message?” Keith looked at Lance once he was done telling the group about his reason for being in Altea.

       “I’m not really sure honestly, I was hoping that Coran might have some information on this. It’s not like the dreams are bothering me, it’s just that I have a niggling feeling at the back of my head that I’m missing something. Like its right there, but I’m just not seeing it right.”

       “Hmm, I’m not really sure if there’s anything I can do to help Lance.” Coran stroked his chin, eyebrows furrowed in concentration. He finally shrugged and said, “Well, I suggest you rest for the night and see if anything unusual happens in your dreams here. Allura and Honerva’s sacrifice did bring back Altea and a few other planets, a bit of their quintessence might be left in these planets.”

       “If what you’re saying is true Coran, then Lance should be able to get what Allura was trying to tell him clearer here on Altea?” Shiro added, Coran only nodded in response.

       “Whatever it is, we’ll only know tomorrow morning. We should discuss the other urgent matters now.” Lance looked around to the group as he said this, eyes falling to Krolia, Acxa, Romelle, and Merla who had joined them after their dinner for the discussion. “Tell us what happened, Keith.”

       Keith nodded, playing the relevant footage that Acxa prepared as he spoke. “We received a distress signal from a nearby asteroid belt and decided to stop and help whoever who was sending it. As we got closer to the source, we saw the ship that was pinging the signal, it looked … familiar.” Keith hesitated as he brought up the footage of the ship. It looked similar to an Altean design, but not exactly the same. Probably another advanced race of aliens nearby. “We sent out a message to them to ask what was happening down there, but minutes passed by without a response.” The room was tense, everyone on edge at the footage and retelling of what happened.

       “We decided to land and investigate, in case there were crew on board the ship that were too injured to respond. A few steps away from reaching their ship, we were ambushed and attacked.” Keith looked uncomfortable as he continued, and Lance’s heart ached. Keith took a deep breath as he brought up the next piece of footage. Gasps were heard all around the room as the video played, Keith and Acxa avoiding eye contact with everyone. “We were attacked by Alteans.” Keith said it so softly, it almost came out as a whisper. But the clear image of the Alteans attacking the Blades was enough for everyone to understand what he said.

       Lance had a roller coaster of emotions playing inside him. Shock, anger, disbelief, confusion, and horror at the revelation of what had happened. It was obvious that everyone was going through the same thing, and the room fell silent as the footage of the attack continued. No one said anything to break the silence, until the video reached a clear view of Keith and one of the Altean’s swordfight. The rest of the Blades had already boarded the ship, following Keith’s command. Two of the Alteans had boarded their own ship, leaving their assumed leader and Keith battling out in the open.

       Keith had managed to disarm his opponent and was making a beeline for his ship, when he narrowly missed a shot that landed by his side. A few more shots landed around him and just as he turned to see the shooter on board the Altean ship, the leader rushed towards him with her sword. He managed to dodge her attack aimed at his chest, but her blade had instead pierced his abdomen, going all the way through his back. The image of him bleeding on the impaled sword burned itself into Lance’s memory.

       “That’s enough.” The silence was broken by Krolia’s hard voice, and Lance looked up to see her eyes filled with barely contained rage.

       Keith cut off the footage and continued speaking. “Acxa shot at the Alteans, and provided enough cover for Zethrid to help me on board and for us to escape. Luckily, we managed to end up here and the help everyone gave us was quick. Thank you Merla, for your team’s response, you guys really saved us there.” With Keith done talking, the room fell silent again, the atmosphere heavier than before. There were too many things to say, but the shock was still there keeping everyone quiet.

       “Why?” Romelle asked quietly. “Why did they attack?”

       “I don’t know.” Coran looked as stricken as he sounded, his expression unusually upset.

       “Their ship isn’t like any we’ve seen here, right?” Lance asked, hoping this was some sort of clue that the Alteans weren’t actually behind this.

       “Lance is right, none of these ships seem to resemble the ships here. Though there are definite similarities, I don’t think you guys have this ship.” Pidge piped in. “Unless, there were remnants of Honerva’s followers from the colony?” She trailed off, voicing out the possibility made her feel uncomfortable.

       “Impossible, the colony had no new advancements to the technology that was left behind for us from generations past. Even the pod we took to escape the first time was similar to the ones on the castle-ship.” Romelle argued back, Merla agreeing with her.

       “Whatever it was, we just need to find out more information on the attack and see if anyone else has had a run in with them.” Shiro calmly voiced out his opinion.

       Coran hummed his agreement, his expression hard at the idea of his people being their new enemy. “Shiro’s right, we need to know why they’re doing this, where exactly they’re from, and how we could stop them before things get out of hand.”

       “Then it’s settled. We rest tonight, and start work on finding out what we can tomorrow morning.” Shiro gave out orders that everyone could agree with. “Pidge, we should let the Garrison know to look out for that Altean ship. If it passes through the Garrison’s radar, they should inform us.”

       “On it, Shiro,” was all Pidge said before she left the room, Hunk following her to send the message.

       “I’ll let the coalition and our security forces here know too.” Coran announced, waving a goodbye to the group as he and Merla took their leave.

       Krolia was the next to leave, informing everyone that she will be sharing this information and giving the same orders to the Blade of Marmora and the security unit on Daibazaal.

       “I guess the rest of us should call it a night, we’ve all had an unexpected day.” Shiro gave a small smile to the remaining people in the room, as he got up to leave. “You sure you’re okay, Keith?”

       “I’m fine, the healing pod did its job.” Keith gave a crooked grin, the one Lance didn’t see that often, and the one he suddenly realised he missed.

       As Lance stared at him, he noticed the faint bloom of pink growing on Keith’s cheeks, and the small quirk of his lips as he chuckled softly. _‘Cute. Why do I think he’s cute?’_ Lance was trying to answer his own question, when he noticed Keith’s lips moving, forming words that he was too distracted to hear. _‘Why am I so distracted by them?’_

       The sudden appearance of Romelle’s confused face beside Keith’s made Lance realise that they were both staring at him. Romelle in confusion, and Keith in something Lance didn’t understand. _‘Was he feeling shy? Did my staring make him uncomfortable?’_ It also made him realise that he was caught staring and zoning out, completely missing what Keith was saying to him.

       Acxa spoke up suddenly, finally ending the awkward tension that was growing. “I’ll be taking my leave for tonight. Keith, if you need any assistance, please look for me.” She got up to leave, but turned back to look at him with a sombre expression. “And Keith, you should rest, your body needs to recover its energy. Thank you for making sure all of us were safe, leader.” She left before anyone could even respond, Romelle leaving shortly after, which left Keith and Lance alone in the dining room.

       An almost awkward silence grew, and Lance was having an internal debate on whether he should leave for the night, or stay for awhile and talk to Keith. Leaving meant saving both of them from the weird tension building, but staying meant more time with Keith. And Lance would probably never admit it, but spending time with him just felt right. But it might still be awkward.

_‘_ _And Keith is most likely exhausted, he was probably gonna leave anyways.’_  So, Lance made up his mind to leave, despite wanting to stay.

       “You wanna go for a walk?” Keith asked just as Lance made up his mind to leave, the uncertainty on his face contradicting his confident tone.

        Lance could only nod in response, unaware of the small smile immediately replacing the tension on his face. “Yeah, sure. A walk sounds good, Mullet.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope whoever read this far has enjoyed it! I'm not so sure of my writing, so any feedback, advice and such is always welcomed, and you can find me on Instagram @KittyRouge_.


	6. A walk

The silence stretched between them as they walked around the grounds, the awkwardness somehow creeping back. Lance was just about to suggest they head back, when Keith suddenly spoke up, “I haven’t seen you in a while. How are you, Lance?”

       “You’re seriously asking me? Considering I wasn’t the one who just came out of a healing pod, I’d say I’m doing pretty fine.” He couldn’t help laughing at how absurd it felt for Keith to be the one asking how he was. Even Keith couldn’t hold back a few chuckles.

       “Hey, stop laughing, I’m serious. You know that I’m fine after the whole healing pod thing, now I want to know how you are.”

       “I’m actually doing pretty okay. The dreams are a little frustrating, but that’s why I’m here to figure it out.” Lance shrugged, not really knowing what else to say.

       “It’s good that you’re okay.” Keith paused, looking away from him as he continued. “I doubt it’s easy for you to see her in your dreams.”

       “The first time was tough honestly,” Lance had no idea why he was telling him this, but it just felt right so he went on. “But after that, the dreams just felt urgent. As if I really needed to know something, but I just couldn’t seem to get it. The last dream seemed to have the clearest message, that I had to be here, and so here I am. I brought along Pidge and Shiro, and we got hold of Hunk on the way here. We tried to contact you, but yeah.”

       “Yeah.” He shrugged sheepishly, before continuing. “Bringing the team together, just like always eh, Lance?”

       “What do you mean by that?” Lance really didn’t get what he meant.

       “Well, you were the first to bring us together when you were chosen by the Blue Lion. And even now, we managed to have a spontaneous reunion thanks to your dream.” Lance turned to look at Keith in surprise, and was about to shrug off the compliment, but he was distracted by the soft smile on Keith’s face and the way the light shone around him.

       They carried on walking aimlessly, exchanging stories and catching up with each other’s lives, until they reached Allura’s statue. There was a comfortable silence between them as they both stood and looked at her regal form immortalised in stone, paying their respects to the princess that changed their lives.

       “It’s great, what you’re doing.” Lance turned when Keith spoke up softly, he wasn’t looking at Lance as he continued talking. “Spreading her message of love and letting people know of her sacrifice.”

       It was a moment before he could respond, caught off guard by the praise. It almost felt ridiculous, thinking back to the days where they were supposedly rivals. “Yeah, I could say the same about you too. Being the future of the Galra and helping people all over the universe is no small matter. Guess I was right when I told Bob you were the future.”

       And there it was, a rarely seen flustered Keith. Lance chuckled at the sight, enjoying the adorable light blush blooming on his cheeks. _‘Oh. That’s new.’_ Now it was his turn to be flustered. _‘Just because I find him adorable doesn’t have to make anything weird. Anyone would agree that he’s adorable like this. Has he always looked like this?’_

       His mental rambling was cut off by Keith’s sudden curious expression and question. “How do you do that? Like how do you control it?” Keith was squinting at his face now, as if trying to make sense of it.

       “Excuse me, but what?”

       “Your Altean marks, they’re glowing. How do you do it?”

 _‘Wow, curious Keith is even cuter. Like a cat, a fluffy mullet cat.’_ “Well, you know, I just-.” Lance cut himself off, finally catching up to the conversation.

 _‘Wait, glowing? What was glowing?’_ Keith was staring at him now, waiting for an answer. _‘My marks! They’re glowing?’_ He really should stop his distracting thoughts tonight, they’re not helping him much.

       “I, uh, don’t know?” Lance shrugged, surprised at the hand slowly reaching towards his face. He looked back and forth at said hand and the owner’s face, wondering if Keith realised what he was doing. He stood still, waiting for whatever to happen, then he felt it. A gentle caress of Keith’s thumb on his face, right over his mark. For some reason, the idea of someone touching his marks felt odd, as if the action was unheard of. As if it was simply too intimate to do.

       Warmth flooded his face, and he saw the exact moment Keith realised what he was doing. The curiosity in his eyes and the small smile on his lips were replaced by a look of horror, and he yanked his hand away as if burned by the contact. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realise-” he started apologising, looking anywhere but at Lance. “I didn’t mean to-”

       “It’s alright, don’t sweat it.” Lance chuckled. “I actually don’t know why they glow. The last time they did was almost a year ago, when the lions left. I haven’t really asked anyone here about the marks. And it’s not like I was born Altean, I don’t have the whole chameleon or Balmera thing going on for me, so I’m not even sure if they can tell me what’s up with my marks.” It came out sounding bitter even though he really didn’t think much of it.

       To him, his marks were just a reminder of the love he shared with an amazing person that left him too soon. Allura taught him what it meant to love and what it meant to lose, and he will always be grateful to her for that.

       “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.” He was looking at Lance now, probably noticing the shift in his mood. “You know, I was born half Galra, and I still don’t know much about being Galran. Hell, I’m not surprised if Hunk knows more about it than I do.”

       They both laughed at that, and Lance realised then that Keith was trying his best to cheer him up in his own way. He appreciated it, and it struck him again how much they’ve been through. “So, you’ve never liked turned Galra before?” He was curious now.

       Keith thought hard about the question, eyebrows scrunched up and a small frown on his face. “I don’t actually think I can? I’ve never tried turning Galra, I just assumed I couldn’t. I wouldn’t know how to even if I could.”

       “It’s for the best I guess, that you don’t randomly transform. Imagine growing up without being able to control it.” They both laughed at the mental image of kid Keith randomly changing from human to Galran.

       “Actually, maybe I can.” He paused, thinking hard. “And maybe I have sort of accidentally gone Galra once, back when we still had our lions. I can’t really explain it and I don’t know if I physically changed, but for a few moments I felt different. Like I was on some sort of wild adrenaline spike.”

       “What even-? When was this? Why didn’t you tell us?” Lance was amazed, leave it to him to not tell anyone something as significant as that.

       Keith looked uncomfortable, but he answered anyway. “It happened before we left for Earth, while I was fighting Shiro’s clone.”

       “Oh.” He shouldn’t have asked, now he was the one prying. “I-”

       “Don’t worry about it Lance, it’s fine to talk about the past.” He cut off Lance’s apology, and they both let a comfortable silence fall between them. A few moments passed before Keith turned to see Lance staring at him intently.

       “That’s also where you got your mark, right?” he pointed to where the mark would be on his own face.

       “You mean my scar?”

       “Wait, dude, that’s a scar?” Lance’s eyes were wide with the revelation. “I just assumed it was a mark like Krolia’s.”

       “Hmm, I’m pretty sure this is a burn scar. But yeah, you’re right, it could pass of as a mark like hers. Then we’d both have war marks huh?” They looked at each other and started laughing again.

       “Look at us both, laughing at the marks we got from the war.” Their laughter died down, and he sighed an exaggerated sigh. “Good times, good times.”

       Keith gave him the flattest look he’s seen in a while, even more deadpan than Pidge’s, “Really, Lance? Good times?”

       This just triggered another round of laughs for both of them.

       They were interrupted by Pidge and Hunk, the former marching straight up to Keith to smack his arm.

       “Ouch, what was that for?” He was more confused than actually hurt, wondering what he did to warrant her wrath.

       “That was for being dumb and making us worry, Keith. The war is over, yet we were welcomed here with the news that you almost died. Again. Trust your team and stop putting yourself in danger just to protect everyone else.” She crossed her arms and was trying to sound angry, but the worry and hurt were clear in her tone.

       “I’m not gonna say sorry you know, I did what I had to.” He said softly, reaching out to placate her. “But I promise I’ll be more careful next time, okay?”

       “Wait, what do you mean again?” Hunk piped in, once he went through memories of their time as paladins, not recalling a moment where Keith surely almost died.

       “Naxzela.” Pidge replied, looking straight at Keith.

       “Naxzela?” Lance questioned, “the bomb planet? When did you almost die?”

       “How-?”

       “Matt told me.” Pidge cut Keith off, knowing what he was going to ask anyway. “Are you going to tell them, or should I?”

       Keith looked at Hunk and Lance, about to dismiss the conversation when Lance cut in, “Yeah Keith, didn’t you say it’s fine to talk about the past. We just wanna know what happened man, it’s the first I’m hearing about this.”

       “Yeah buddy, it’s just surprising to hear that you almost died and we didn’t know about it even years after it happened.” Hunk added, he didn’t want Keith to be uncomfortable, but he did really want to know.

       Keith sighed in defeat and gave in, deciding that he should tell the story instead of Pidge. “Fine, I was just doing what I had to. Voltron was too far, Haggar’s shield too strong, and the lives lost would have been too many if she wasn’t stopped in time. Millions if not billions of lives would have been lost if Naxzela was successfully detonated, including Voltron and all of you piloting it.”

       “I don’t get it, what are you trying to say? What happened?” Hunk was starting to sound frantic.

       Pidge stared at Keith, the lost look on his face proving her right, that he did almost die and he was actually terrified of it. But she understood why he would have done it. She’d do the same too, not only to save the lives of strangers, or to just make sure the defender of the universe survived. Just like Keith, she’d do it just to keep her family safe too, and the Paladins and Coran were his family.

       “I was going to break the shield and make way for the rebels to stop her, probably buy time for you guys to get to her. But I didn’t need to, Lotor came and he, you know.” He trailed off.

       “Break the shield? On your own in a single Galra fighter?”  Hunk was thinking of ways he could die doing that, when it dawned on him and the thought was too much to voice out.

       Lance understood too, and it hurt him. He knew that Keith’s sacrifice would definitely have saved all those lives, including his own, but it just seemed unreal.

       “Look, I didn’t bother mentioning it because anyone of us would have done the same. We all fought in the same fight, and we should know better than most people that sacrifice is just a part of war.” The tension between the group was made worse by the silence that followed Keith’s statement.

       “We should head back and get some sleep.” No one argued with Lance, the four of them quiet as they started to walk back to the castle.

       “I’m sorry for bringing it up, I was just-”

       “I get it, Pidge. I’m sorry for keeping it from you guys too.” Keith cut her off, his apology leaving the group to walk in silence again.

       Lance was lagging behind the group, his feet heavy with what he had just found out. He looked up when he saw Keith slowing down to match his pace. There was guilt on his face, and he looked like he was about to say something but Lance spoke up before him.

       “You shouldn’t look so guilty, we’re not angry at you.” The guilt made way for brief surprise before he schooled his expression to a more neutral one. Moments passed and neither of them said anything. Lance looked ahead to see that Pidge and Hunk were much further ahead of them and were waving their goodbyes as they reached the castle. He could only wave back weakly as he watched them go.

       He stopped a few feet away from the castle entrance, turning to talk to Keith. Keith looked at him, the neutral expression fixed in place, but Lance saw the tension in his shoulders and the stress in his jaw. “I’m not angry at you, I understand why you would have done it. And you’re right, I’d have done it too if I was in your place.”

       Keith finally relaxed, a sombre expression on his face. “I didn’t think I had a choice, Lance.”

       “I know. Honestly, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m glad Lotor was around.”

       “Yeah, me too.” Keith chuckled and bumped his shoulder against Lance, trying to lighten the mood. “Never thought I’d hear you say it though.”

       Lance looked at the flowers in the distance and to the statue of Allura, Keith’s eyes following his line of sight. “Losing her was difficult. Saying goodbye for the last time was like swallowing broken glass. But I wouldn’t trade the goodbye for anything in the universe.” He paused, continuing after he turned to see Keith staring at her statue. He looked tired, but he was safe and alive, and Lance could only be thankful for that. 

       “If Lotor didn’t arrive in time, if he hadn’t stopped her, you would have stopped her. But you would’ve left us. And the shittiest thing about that is none of us would have had a proper goodbye. We’d just be left to hear about what you did, and we probably wouldn’t even have enough time to grieve with the war still going on. It was only after Allura’s sacrifice that I realised how meaningful goodbyes were. Coran may not say it or even show it, but I know that it aches for him to not have gotten a moment with her like the rest of us did. So yeah, I’m glad he was around.” He started walking again, heading to their rooms.

       The rest of their walk was silent until they reached Lance’s room, Keith’s room a few doors down the corridor.

       “Thanks Lance, for understanding… and also for that. You’re right, it would’ve sucked to not say goodbye.” Keith smiled, and started to leave for his room.

       Lance watched his retreating figure and called out just as he reached his room. “Goodnight, Keith.”

       Keith turned to reply but Lance was already in his room and out of sight. He shook his head and smiled to himself, whispering a quiet “Goodnight, Lance.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Hope its been okay so far :D


	7. Dreams and premonitions?

“Allura? Is it really you?” Lance knew he was dreaming, but this was the clearest she’s been in his dreams.

       “Lance, I’m so glad you got my message, we don’t have much time.” He wasn’t prepared for how overwhelming it was to hear her voice, but it was clear that things were urgent and he needed to put aside his feelings for now.

       “Allura, what’s wrong? What have you been trying to tell me?”

       “There’s a new threat to the universe, Lance. I believe that Voltron may need to return to stop it before it gets out of control. I know that the fight should already be over, and now would ideally be the time of peace and recovery, but our travels through alternate realities may have consequences only arising now.” Her hurried explanation raising more questions than answers for him.

       “Voltron is gone, the lions left on the first anniversary of your sacrifice. They’ve been gone for almost a year now. The lions are attached to your life force, it only made sense that they left when they did.” He tried his best to not sound frustrated, but this was definitely not how he imagined seeing her again would go, having to explain the lions’ departure only making things harder for him.

       “The lions can be called back, they are bonded to all of you. And Lance, I chose you. You can bring them back, you must bring them back to you.” Allura’s figure was slowly fading, her voice getting less and less clear. They were running out of time.

       “Wait, Allura! No! I still don’t understand, what is threatening us? How do I bring the lions back? Allura please!” Lance was desperately trying to find answers, their conversation not making things any clearer for him.

       Just before his usual fall, she said something clear enough for him to catch. “You need to gain the knowledge and you need to hurry. The fate of the universe may be at stake once again. Remember, I chose you, I know we will meet again.”

       And with that, he fell, the bright white beam growing larger and larger in front of him.

\-----

       “You don’t look so great. Rough night, Lance?”

       “Thanks Romelle. No, it wasn’t a rough night. It was just ughh.” He could only groan to explain how frustrated he was feeling.

       Lance was the last to arrive for breakfast and he quickly took his seat between Romelle and Hunk. He looked around the table and saw that everyone was mostly done with their meal, with conversations going on in small groups. He ate his meal quietly, finishing it quickly so the main discussions can begin.

       “Where’s Acxa and the rest of the Blade?” Lance asked as he noticed only Keith and Krolia were at the table.

       “They left for Daibazaal earlier in the morning, Keith and Krolia are staying for the discussion and probably leaving later in the evening.” Hunk answered beside him.

       “I don’t think Keith will be leaving any time soon.”

       “Excuse me, but what are you talking about, Lance? Why won’t I be leaving?” Keith looked at him with a confused expression, and Lance realised that everyone at the table was giving him the same look.

       “Lance, did something happen in your dream?” Shiro asked, voicing out everyone’s thoughts.

       “Well, sort of. It was clearer, she was clearer. But the conversation was short and I now have more questions than answers and it’s just frustrating.” Lance grumbled, clearly whatever happened in the dream bothered him. “Can we discuss anything else first?” Looks of concern were exchanged across the table, and Hunk patted his back to try and soothe him.

       Coran cleared his throat and stood up then, drawing the attention of those present. “Very well then, I’ll start by giving my update. We ran the images of the ship through our system and came up blank. The same goes for the attackers’ faces, they have no identification as Alteans here.” Lance was sure that this was supposed to be good news, yet Coran, Romelle, and even Merla were still frowning.

       “Isn’t that a good thing?”

       “I’m afraid not, Keith. You see, they were definitely Alteans. We just don’t know who they are or where they even came from.” Coran answered seriously, the stress deepening his frown. Before Lance could ask how they were confirmed as Alteans, Coran continued and explained. “We ran the footage of the fight, and just as the Blades’ ship was taking off, the angle changed to show the back of the Alteans’ ship. It bears our old royal insignia.” He brought up said image, cementing the fact that the attackers were indeed one of their own.

       “I’m afraid that’s all we have for now, but we will continuously be studying whatever information we have to find any new leads.” Coran finished, nodding to Krolia and Shiro.

       “The Blades and Daibazaal’s security base have been informed, and we were updated today that there have been no sightings or run-ins with them near any of our posts.” Krolia kept her update short and to the point.

       Shiro gave the last update, stating that the Garrison and the coalition have also been informed and are keeping an eye out for them. So far, they have not appeared on anyone’s radar.

       “Well, I guess that wraps up this discussion then.” Coran announced, receiving scattered hums of agreements. “Lance, are you able to share with us what happened?” he asked gently, minding Lance’s feelings about the whole situation.

       Lance looked at Coran, appreciating the fact that he was given an option even though he knew he had to let them know. With a sigh, Lance started talking. “Allura was there, as in she wasn’t just telling me things. No, we communicated. Two ways and all that.” Gasps were heard here and there, but he kept going. “She says that Voltron may be needed to stop a new threat to the universe.”

       “But how and who-?” Pidge started but was cut off by Shiro.

       “Let him finish explaining, we’ll ask questions after. Please go on, Lance” Shiro nodded to him.

       “Thanks, Shiro. Allura explained that we are still bonded to our lions, and they will come back to us.” He paused, staring at empty space before he could continue. “Then things just got more confusing from there. She said she chose me, and I have to help bring the lions back to us. To do that, I’m supposed to gain some knowledge?”

       “I don’t know, time was running out and she was fading before she could explain. She didn’t tell me what the new threat was, just that it may be the consequence of our jump through realities when we fought Honerva.” He let out a defeated sigh, “The last thing she told me was to hurry and gain the knowledge, and that she knew we would meet again soon. Then I fell as usual, and this time I saw the white beam again instead of juniberry flowers.”

       “That’s…. a lot to process.” Keith spoke up once Lance was done talking.

       “Yeah, and here’s the thing. The dream last night felt final, as if I won’t be seeing her in my dreams again. So, I don’t get how exactly I’m going to see her again and get answers.”

       “You don’t think…” Hunk trailed off.

       “Spit it out, Hunk.” Pidge grumbled. She was on edge now, realising that Lance won’t be able to answer her questions and understanding why he was so frustrated today.

       Hunk looked torn between wanting to say it out loud and keeping it to himself. The glare Pidge shot his way decided it for him. “She can’t be saying that you’re, well you know. Dying anytime soon?”

       The thought never crossed Lance’s mind, but now that Hunk mentioned it, it seemed to actually be a possibility. He was surprised by the fact that he couldn’t really deny the statement.

       A moment of silence as everyone processed the statement, then chaos. Pidge stood up in anger, Coran in strong denial, Hunk was trying to take back what he said. Voices were overlapping each other, everyone trying to deny the possibility of losing Lance.

       Lance sat down, silently taking in the faces of his friends and found family as they kept talking, voices getting louder and louder. Then his eyes fell on the only other silent person, who was staring straight back at him.

       Keith’s expression was hard, but flashes of emotions were dancing in his eyes. Lance couldn’t catch them all, but he did see shock, anger, grief, and others that he can’t name. They stared at each other, until Lance finally saw hurt settle in his eyes for a moment before understanding and defeat took its place.

       Of course Keith understood him, their time as paladins proved that over and over again. He always knew what to say when Lance needed advice, or a pep talk, or even simple reassurance. He just understood Lance as much as Lance understood him, maybe even more than that.

_'Sacrifice is just a part of war.’_ Keith’s words from last night echoed in his head as he tuned out all the noise. If there really is going to be another war, then Hunk might not be wrong after all.

 

 


	8. History

The breakfast discussion ended with everyone agreeing that the dream definitely wasn’t a premonition of Lance’s death, and it should be studied for further clues and deciphering. Well, almost everyone.

       The group dispersed with plans to meet during dinner. Keith sent Krolia off as she made her way back to Daibazaal, Coran insisting on two Altean cruisers escorting her ship all the way back. Hunk made himself comfortable in the kitchen, meeting with the chefs and holding an impromptu cooking class. Shiro and Pidge happily accepted Merla’s offer of a tour around their Engineering and Alchemy workspaces, which Lance happily declined to join.

       Lance was wondering around the castle when he bumped into Coran and Keith, both coming back from sending Krolia off. Keith was clearly avoiding Lance’s gaze, his face schooled to show no emotion. Lance was annoyed by this and he was going to make sure Keith knew that he was pissed.

       Except, he didn’t. Because that’s what younger Lance would have done. He would have misunderstood Keith’s distance as indifference, let himself get riled up by his lone wolf act. But he knew better now, he knew Keith was just internalising and coping with the fear of eventual loss. Keith grew up during the war much like Lance did, and a lot has changed. That didn’t mean all old habits were broken though, sometimes they’re just reeled in under the surface, waiting to break free again.

       Sensing the tension between the two young men, Coran cleared his throat and spoke up. “Since you two seem to be free, would you like to try a round on our training deck? Like good old times?”

       Lance was about to just agree, when Keith cut in. “Thanks Coran, but I’m still a little tired from yesterday.”

_‘Right, he was impaled yesterday.’_ Lance shuddered at the reminder. He was perplexed by how it seemed like it was a while ago, when it actually happened just yesterday.

       Coran looked worriedly at him, wondering if the healing pod didn’t work fully on his wounds. “It’s fine. I’m fully healed, just a little tired.” Keith finally met eyes with Lance, before addressing Coran again. “I have a suggestion though, how about we learn a little more about Altean history?”

       Lance caught the knowing look in Keith’s eyes. He was doing this for Lance, hoping some questions would be answered about his Altean side. If there even was one. 

       “I’m glad that you’re interested in our history, number four-”

       “Oh come on Coran, I’ve grown taller!” Keith cut him off. There was no real heat and he actually didn’t mind. In fact, it was a nice reminder of the good times they had when they first got into space. 

       “-but what exactly would you like to know? There are so many different parts I can talk about.” He continued talking, ignoring Keith’s statement with a smile.

       Lance laughed at what he saw, cutting in to answer Coran’s question. “What can you tell us about the Altean marks? Can you control when they glow?”

       “Ah, alright then. Well, first of all, you can’t control when they glow. In fact, not all of our marks can glow, only those with a strong connection to alchemy and quintessence can. As for the glowing itself, honestly there isn’t much we know for sure about it. In theory, a strong wave of quintessence could trigger it. That or gaining or practicing alchemic knowledge may cause it to glow too.”

       “What about random moments?” Keith asked, just as curious as Lance was about it.

       “Well, it wouldn’t be impossible. But we don’t really have accounts of it randomly happening, something unconscious may trigger it.” Coran looked as if he was thinking hard, eyebrows scrunched up tight. “Why are you two so curious about this?”

       They both looked at each other sheepishly, before Keith shrugged and answered Coran. “Lance’s marks glowed last night, when we were talking in front of Allura’s statue.”

       “Was it the first time?” Coran was surprised and now he was the curious one, looking intently at Lance’s marks.

       “Well, not really. I guess the first time was when she gave me the marks.” A flash of pain quickly passed through Coran’s eyes as Lance said this, but he continued anyway. “And only once after, that I’m aware of, when the lions left.”

       “I see.” Coran paused, staring at empty space. “Yours is a special case, since you’re one of a kind and the only non-Altean to have our marks. As far as I’m aware, that is.”

       Lance’s face fell in disappointment. _‘Another question with no answers.’_

       “But if we’re going by Altean history, your marks glowing should mean you’re a Chosen.” Coran laughed at the impossibility of it all.

       “Chosen?” Keith seemed lost and he looked to Lance for an explanation. What he got instead was a wide eyed Lance who was obviously zoning out.

       “Coran, you said I’m a Chosen.” Lance finally whispered once the initial shock wore off.

       “I did, but don’t worry. It was just a joke, I meant no harm by it.” He was still chuckling lightly, not really taking in Lance’s growing shock.

       “Allura said she chose me.” This finally caught his attention. “She said I needed to gain the knowledge, and call back the lions.”

       Coran stared back at Lance, eyes growing just as wide as his. They were both silently freaking out over some revelation that Keith was clearly missing out on. It was almost funny to watch.

       “Alright, can someone please tell me what’s going on?” Keith was starting to worry as they just kept staring at each other.

       The only answer he got was both of them simultaneously whispering,

       “Oriande.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, hope everyone's enjoying it so far! I headcanon that emotions are tied to quintessence, which can trigger the glowing marks.


	9. Unknown

After most of the shock wore off, Coran led the two young men to what Keith assumed was his study. Shiro, Pidge, and Hunk were contacted for an emergency meeting while Keith settled down on one of the sofas, watching Lance pace back and forth, still not understanding what he and Coran were freaking out about.

       It was almost 10 minutes of watching Lance pace and Coran silently think before the three arrived, Merla walking in with them. As Coran and Lance explained their theory of him being chosen, the four newcomers gasped in shock and began discussing the relevance and possibilities of it being true.

       “Can someone please fill me in? I still don’t get it.” Keith sighed heavily, frustrated at missing a point that was apparently obvious to everyone else in the room.

       “Oh.” Lance looked straight at him, seeming to realise something. “You weren’t there with us, at Oriande. When Allura and Lotor…” He trailed off, looking for someone to help explain.

       Coran and Pidge filled him in on what he had missed during the time he was away, and Keith finally understood the significance of Lance being a Chosen.

       “So, what you’re saying is that Lance has the same sort of power Allura had?” Lance couldn’t blame Keith for sounding doubtful at the possibility, even he found it hard to believe.

       “Well, I can’t say for sure… But it seems to be what the dreams are pointing at.” Coran looked lost in thought.

       “Wasn’t Oriande destroyed during the fight though?” Hunk asked as the discussions continued.

       “If Altea and Daibazaal were restored, it is quite possible that Oriande was too.” Pidge answered him, wondering if she was right. “Though, even if it was restored, the existence of the White Lion and the Oriande Castle can’t be guaranteed.” The room was silent as everyone processed this, their glimmer of hope fading.

       Lance felt hopeless again. Just as he thought the answers were within reach, new uncertainties and doubts come surfacing. How is he supposed to gain the knowledge then? What other knowledge is out there besides the one on Oriande?

       “We should still try.” Keith spoke up, determined to not let go of their only solid clue. “We won’t find out anything if we don’t try, and I think this is the best place to start. What do you think, Lance?”

       “Huh? Oh… ” All eyes were on him, waiting for an answer. “I guess whatever the team agrees on would be best.”

       “If you ask me, what you think about it outweighs whatever the team would agree on.” Keith looked at him seriously, everyone else exchanging surprised looks. “You’re the one that’s chosen, you’ll have to face whatever trials in Oriande to gain the knowledge. It should be your decision, Lance. The rest of us will support you, whatever you choose to do.”

       Lance looked around to the faces in the room. Keith was right, if he was the one responsible for the decision, the rest would support him undoubtedly. He took a deep breath as he readied himself to speak up, “I think I have to try. I don’t know if anything will happen or if I’m really a Chosen, but I think it’s worth a shot.”

       “It’s settled then, we’ll make plans and preparations for the journey.” Shiro smiled, looking to Coran for confirmation.

       “I’ll let the Garrison know. Keith, you should let Krolia know too.” Pidge added as she got up to leave.

       “Wait, you guys don’t have to go with me to Oriande. I can manage the journey on my own.”

       Pidge turned to glare at him from the doorway, “I swear, Lance you-”

       She was cut off and guided out the door by Hunk who talked over her in a hurry. “What she means to say is that we’re a team and we have your back, so we’re going with you!”

       “We’re not just a team, we’re family Lance. Besides, if your dream is true, then we’ll need to be around to call the lions back right?”

       Shiro was right, even if he could make the journey on his own, the rest of the team needed to be around to pilot the lions. _‘That is if I actually can gain whatever knowledge I’m supposed to and call back the lions.’_ Lance could only nod, not really up for voicing his doubts now that everyone was set on heading to Oriande.

       “Actually Shiro, we have some time to find out more about Oriande. I could send a cruiser out with soldiers and a few of our people that have strong bonds with quintessence for reconnaissance. It’s no guarantee if they may pass the guardian, so we may not know what the inside of Oriande is like. But we would at least be able to determine that Oriande is in existence, and if it’s location is unchanged.” Coran looked thoughtfully at Lance.

       “In the meantime, I would like to run some tests and studies with you Lance. If you’re alright with it that is. There may be other Altean traits that you possess, that you simply haven’t realised.” To say Lance was skeptical of what Coran implied was an understatement.

       “How is that even possible? I wasn’t born Altean, Coran. There’s no way I can actually do what you guys can.”

       “Well, that’s the thing. Marks of the Chosen are only bestowed to those who have a strong connection to quintessence and alchemy. It’s something we have always believed was passed through genetics. Such as with King Alfor and Princess Allura, or even Honerva and Lotor.”

       Lance’s mind instantly drifted to Keith at the mention of Lotor’s name. _‘Right, Lotor isn’t all bad. He just made some mistakes, he was probably just misguided.’_

       “What are you suggesting, Coran?” Keith sounded curious, even though there was disbelief clear in his voice.

       “I have reason to believe that maybe his DNA may have, for lack of a better term, adapted? He may carry Altean genetics now, which enables him to be a Chosen. And if it is true, then he might be able to do some of the things that we can.” Excited. Of all the ways Coran could be feeling about this, he was so clearly and obviously excited about it.

       “How can we find out?” Lance was a little embarrassed by how urgently he asked this, but he needed to know. He needed some confirmation that he may be able to channel quintessence through him like Allura did, confirmation that he may really be able to enter Oriande.

       “We can have a DNA test run, to trace Altean genetics in you. If it comes out positive and you’d like to try, we could try and train you on certain basic things like changing your appearance.”

       “Changing my-? But what-?” Coran seemed unaffected by Lance’s total loss for words.

       “I think he may need some time to process, Coran.” Shiro looked amusedly at Lance’s reaction. “We can give him some time to decide. In the meantime, I think we should go with your recon suggestion and send a team out as soon as possible.”

       “Ah yes, we can go and ready a team now.” Coran agreed with him and nodded to Merla. “Let me know once you’ve decided, Lance. And Keith, you should go rest, we may have a long journey ahead of us.” He smiled at the both of them as he, Merla, and Shiro got up to leave. Lance could only nod, still trying to catch up with everything that’s going on.

       When he felt like he finally got a grip on himself, he turned to look at the only other person left. Keith was still there staring at Lance with a knowing look, and it frustrated him. “What?”

       “Nothing, just wanted to make sure you’re okay.” Keith shrugged. “I had a… difficult time processing the fact that I was half Galra, because I only ever knew how to be human. And it wasn’t really something I felt anyone would understand, especially given the situation back then.”

       Lance paid attention to what Keith had to say, appreciating the effort it took for Keith to share this with him. He had a distant look on his face, recalling the memories of when he found out.

       “But now that the war is over and things are the way they are, I guess I realised that things sometimes happen for reasons that I could never have expected. It was tough when I found out, but it’s worth it now that I know. I’m sure if you really are a Chosen, and if you do have an Altean side, then it’s for a great reason Lance.”

_‘He’s… really something else.’_  Lance took a steadying breath before looking him straight in the eyes and started talking. “Thanks man, I really appreciate it. And I’m sorry you had to go through it the way you did, but I’m glad that you’re… you know?” He suddenly felt embarrassed by what he was going to say, but Keith seemed completely oblivious to it.

       “You’re glad that I’m half Galra?” Keith laughed, and Lance really questioned how dense he could be at times.

       “No, no. I’m not glad that you’re half Galra! Not that there’s anything wrong with it, in fact it’s great that you are and I have nothing against it. Really , I don’t- I just-” _‘I’m just having such a great day.’_

       “What I meant to say was that I’m glad that you’re…. you.” If there was one small thing that he could count as a victory on what has been a pretty crap day so far, it definitely was making Keith blush.

       “Oh, uh thanks Lance.” He was still a little red in the cheeks, but he wore a small smile as they both sat in silence.

       It was a few moments later when Lance caught Keith stifling a yawn, that he remembered Coran’s words. “You should go get some rest, we have another meeting later during dinner.”

       “What are you planning to do until the meeting?”

       “I was just gonna sort my thoughts I guess. It’s been a day, and I haven’t been this restless in a while. I need to think about what Coran suggested, but I’m not sure if I can decide like this.”

       “Hmm, well good luck with that. I’m headed to the training deck.” Keith stood up, throwing Lance a sly grin.

       “Wait! You can’t, you said you were tired?” Lance was understandably worried, Keith didn’t seem to have the best grasp of what resting meant.

       “I’m too tired to spar, or to combat the Gladiator.” He shrugged casually, “But, I think I’m gonna do a few shot practices. Want to join me, Sharpshooter? I could always use some pointers.”

       Just like that, Lance felt better. The invitation to let his frustrations out at the training deck was too good to refuse, and a small part of him was again grateful that Keith was who he was. He didn’t always have the right social cues or the right words, but he understood those around him and he provided comfort in his own weird way.

       “Yeah, sounds good. Let’s go.” Lance couldn’t keep the smile off his face as they left the study even if he tried.

       They both suddenly stopped at the hallway outside of the study, looking around before finally looking at each other.

       “Do you-?”

       “Nope, I thought you-?”

       “Me neither.” Keith chuckled, and Lance realised that this has probably been the most relaxed Keith he’s seen since he got here. “Looks like we’ll have to find the training deck before we can use it.”

       “Race you to it, Mullet!” Lance called out as he started running.

       “Oh it’s on!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading so far, hope you're enjoying it! I want to write my headcanon on why Honerva could bring the Altean colony inside Oriande, but it might end up to drag-y in the story, sooo I'm just gonna leave it here :]
> 
> I hc that the reason she could bring them in is that she actually trapped the guardian on her first solo trip there, so there wasn't a guardian to stop anyone from the colony entering Oriande. I might be wrong, but that's the hc I'm using for this fic :D


	10. Shots

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the short chapter, but stuff happened and I couldn't write as much as I wanted to. And thank you so much to everyone who has given this little fic a chance and read so far, I really appreciate the time you took to read all this! The next update should be sooner, with a lot more things going on if I can manage to write it all out in one go :D

“Not bad, but you need to aim a little higher.” Lance called out, watching Keith’s shots. After almost an hour of chasing each other around the castle, they finally found the training deck. They took turns shooting and observing each other, Lance mainly giving tips to Keith and Keith learning from Lance’s example.

       “Looks like you’re still our sharpshooter. How do you hold this up steadily without getting tired?” Keith asked as he shook the ache out of his arms.

       “I still practice at the Garrison once in a while, Shiro even had me teach a few classes to the cadets. And here, you need to fix your stance, widen your legs a little and lower your centre of gravity by bending your knees a little more.”

       “Like this?” Keith took the shot, which was closer to the aim than the last one.

       “Yeah, just like that. You’ll get used to it and it’ll be like second nature to you.” Lance was pretty impressed by Keith’s progress in the short time they were there. “Why do you wanna learn to shoot anyway? Aren’t you a more of hand to hand combat kinda guy?”

       “Well,” Keith stared hard at the droid he just shot. “Some situations are just safer from a distance I guess.”

_‘Right, he was stabbed at close range.’_

       “I figured that I could probably have my team’s back better if I could fight with both short range and long range weapons.” Keith watched Lance’s shots, paying attention to his stance and posture. “And if we really have another fight ahead of us, I want to be as ready as I can be. I don’t-” he takes his shots, hitting almost all his targets “-want to lose anyone else.”

       “Huh, didn’t you say that sacrifice was just a part of war?” Lance scoffed.

       Keith was quiet and Lance turned to look at him, neither of them continuing their training.

       “Hey, I didn’t-”

       “It’s fine.” Keith cut off Lance’s apology, shrugging as he lifted his gun and took his shots again. “Have you figured out what you’re going to do about what Coran said?”

       “Actually, I have. I think I want to know if I do actually carry the genetics now.” Lance sounded curious, his day finally a little less frustrating now.

       “Good, it wouldn’t hurt to know.” Keith’s shots were starting to get further off from the targets, and Lance took this as a sign to end their spontaneous training session.

       “We should call it a day, and get some rest before the meeting.”

       “Yeah.” They stowed away their weapons and headed out of the training room, a comfortable quiet fell between them. Not wanting to shatter the mood, Keith spoke up softly. “Thanks for the lesson, Lance. We should do this again some time.”

       “We should.” Lance returned the smile easily. The rest of the walk was quiet again until they reached Keith’s bedroom door.

       “Lance-”

       Lance looked at Keith questioningly, his expression clearly showing his struggle to voice his thoughts. He cleared his throat a few times before finally looking straight at Lance and started speaking in a serious tone.

       “About what Hunk said.” Lance was surprised that he was bringing this up, but he didn’t cut him off. “I just want you to know that if what he said was even remotely possible, all of us would do whatever it takes to prevent it from happening. We’re not gonna let it happen just like that, we’ll all fight it. I know what I said about war, but nothing is ever that black and white. So, just don’t… let it bring you down.”

       Lance took a moment to just take in what he said. “I’ll… remember that. Thanks Keith.”

       Keith nodded, stifling a yawn as he entered his room, Lance leaving for his own room feeling a little better than before.

\------

       Lance left his room an hour before the dinner meeting was to start, heading straight for Coran’s office. He was relieved to see Coran there, getting straight to the point and letting him know what he’s decided to do.

       “Very well then, Lance.” Coran smiled to him as he pressed a few buttons on his screen, probably arranging everything for the DNA test to be carried out. “Arin will be here shortly to collect your sample. In the meantime, have a seat.”

       “Oh, we’re doing it here? Now?” Lance didn’t expect it to happen so quickly, nervousness suddenly making its appearance.

       “Why, yes of course. We are in a bit of a hurry, aren’t we? The sooner we know, the better.”

       “Right, right, right.” Lance sat down opposite Coran, knee bouncing up and down as he struggled to sit still. “So, what happens if the results come out positive that I have Altean genes?”

       “That’s really up to you, Lance. I would like to be able to study you, since yours is a very unique case, the first of its kind. And we could also try training you to see which characteristics you carry. But ultimately, it is your decision Lance.”

       Lance nodded, already knowing what he wanted to do. Before he could voice it out, the Altean Coran called Arin came walking in, bringing with him a small tray of things. He smiled at Lance, placing the tray on the table in front of him and gently taking Lance’s arm. It wasn’t even a minute and a small prick later that he got up, smiled at Lance again and left the study with only a nod to both of them.

       Lance turned to Coran with a questioning expression, still trying to process how quick and uneventful the whole thing was.

       “Yeah, he’s a quiet guy. Very efficient and works well with others.”

       “I see…. So, how long will it take to find out?”

       “I’m guessing if nothing goes wrong, then we’ll be able to know by tonight or tomorrow morning.” He shrugged, getting up as he noticed the time. “We should head to the dining room, there are a few matters to share with everyone and a few things we need to decide and plan for.”

       Their walk to the dining room was filled with light chatter, mostly Coran asking him what Earth’s progress was like and letting him know what the progress on Altea was. They reached the dining room and Lance realised that the table was laid out for only six people. Everyone except Shiro had already arrived and taken their seats, Lance taking the seat between Keith and Coran.

       “Sorry to keep you all waiting, I was called to receive an update from Krolia while I was on my way here.” Shiro apologised, walking in a few minutes later and taking the last seat.

       Before anyone could ask any questions, Coran announced the start of dinner. “We’ll eat first, Paladins. Then, we’ll talk.”


	11. Gone

       “So, now that we’re all done, let’s begin. Shiro, would you like to go first?” Coran addressed the table, starting their discussion for the night.

       “Actually Coran, you go ahead first. I’m still waiting for the footage to be sent to us.”

       “Alright then, I have an update on the recon team we sent out. They managed to wormhole their way to the Patrulian Zone, and have gladly reported that Oriande’s white hole is still where we first discovered it. They are attempting to enter it and confirm the condition of Oriande, and will update us on their findings as soon as they can. Aside from that, I have no further updates on the unknown Alteans or any other known potential threats.” Coran spoke clearly, bringing up images of the white hole sent from the recon team. He turned to Shiro as the last picture was brought up. “Shiro, have you received them?”

       “Just did.” He placed the communicator in the middle of the table, a projection of the footage popping up and playing. “This was recorded by one of the Blade’s outpost that spotted the Altean ship, near the edge of this system. As you all can see, the ship is clearly seen here travelling at cruising speed. Then,” Everyone leaned in as Shiro pointed to a spot ahead of the ship.

       “It’s gone.” Pidge gasped, eyes going wide in disbelief.

       “Hang on, replay that again.” Keith stood up, not quite believing what he saw.

       The whole table was silent as Shiro replayed the footage twice, processing what they were seeing. One moment the ship was there, and the next moment it simply disappeared. No wormholes or anything, it was just gone.

       “That’s….” Lance trailed off, at a loss for words.

       “Impossible, that’s what it should be.” Pidge spoke up when it was obvious that no one else was able to say anything.

       “But it obviously happened.” Shiro sighed, eyebrows pinched in frustration. “The time stamp is continuous, and the information they gave us just stated that the ship was cruising for almost an hour before it disappeared. A drone sent out to check the disappearance site came back with no significant information.”

       “There’s not much we can really do about that.” Coran mused.

       “There may actually be something we can do about it.” Pidge piped in, sounding unsure but determined. She looked to Hunk as she continued speaking, “Remember when the Olkari tracked anomalies which led to a predicted mapping of routes? Maybe we could do that?” Hunk thought about it, nodding as he contemplated the suggestion. “Alright, so I think our best shot is to inform everyone, the Blade, the Coalition, the Garrison- Just everyone, to take note of any anomalies happening around them and report back to us as soon as they can.”

       “How exactly will that help?” Keith asked.

       “Well, it really depends on what sort of anomalies occur and how accurately we can detect them. At best, we could figure out what exactly is causing the whole disappearing act and find it’s pattern, if there is one. From there, we might be able to even predict the next occurrence. At the very least, we could prove if the whole thing was a fluke and the Alteans that attacked are gone for good.” Pidge answered hurriedly, her brain already organising what needs to be done.

       “I guess that’s our next step then. Pidge, you should explain the details to Slav, get him to help you out with it.” Shiro instructed. “We’ll call for a conference and explain what needs to be done. Anyone else have anything to add?”

       There were murmurs of “No” going around the table, no one having any extra information on the situation.

_‘It can’t be related, right? Just a coincidence?’_ Lance shook his head to clear his thoughts, deciding that he didn’t really need to voice his concerns over what was most likely just a coincidence. But a small part of him felt uneasy at keeping it to himself, as if he was forgetting something important.

       “Hey buddy, you okay there?” Hunk waved a hand in front of his face, breaking Lance out of his thoughts.

       “Oh, uh yeah. I’m okay.”

       “You have something to add, Lance?” Coran asked.

       Lance looked around to the faces of his friends, their expressions a mixture of patience, curiosity, and concern. _‘Well, I’ve got nothing to lose.’_ He shrugged to himself and cleared his throat before cautiously sharing his thoughts.

       “I was just thinking about…. You know?” it was obvious from their expressions that they clearly did not know what he was talking about. “Maybe… this was what Allura was talking about?”

       “You think that the new threat she mentioned may have something to do with these rogue Alteans?”

       “Consequences of our travels through alternate realities…” Pidge mumbled, cutting Lance off before he could answer Shiro’s question. She had a distant look in her eyes, as if looking at something that no one else could see. A few tense moments passed before she finally spoke again, breaking the silence with an alarming seriousness in her tone. “If what Lance suggested is true, then whoever that attacked the Blade are definitely Alteans. They’re just not our reality’s Alteans.”

       “Exactly. We don’t have enough information to prove it, but…”

       “But it’s possible.” Keith added when Lance trailed off. “We’ve seen and even interacted with Alteans from other realities, there’s a chance this is exactly what we’re dealing with. It would explain the royal insignia on a ship that looks similar, but isn’t exactly the same as the one you have here.”

       “It doesn’t explain the aggression though,” Hunk added. “And it doesn’t explain why or how they’re travelling through realities either.”

       “We need to send out the messages to everyone now, find out as much as we can about this. And we need to get you to Oriande, Lance.” Keith gave the order, sounding much like the leader he was in their previous war. “If that ship could cross realities, then it most probably is made from the same material as Voltron.”

       Pidge realised where Keith’s urgency was coming from. “If they have enough of it to even equip their cruisers, then…” 

       “We’ll need Voltron to fight back whatever is coming for us.” Keith’s voice was hard, the uncertainty of what could be bringing another war to them so soon after they ended one weighing heavy in his chest. “When can we leave for Oriande?”

       “The cruisers we currently have are not equipped to take heavy fire or to return it either, so I commissioned a few upgrades on the cruiser we will be taking. Just a few precautions in case we cross paths with any threats. It will be around 2 quintants before we can leave for Oriande.” Coran announced. “In the meantime, all of you can make your own necessary preparations for this upcoming journey. We’re not certain how long we’ll be travelling out there.”

       “Okay, Pidge and I will be calling for the conference now. Everyone else should get some rest, and we’ll start preparations tomorrow morning.”

       “Actually Shiro, I think I’ll be heading to Daibazaal tonight. I’ll be back to help with the preparations here by tomorrow.” All eyes turned to Keith as he said this. “There’s some stuff I need to get from there, and some things I need to do if I’m gonna be away for a while.”

       “I’ll go with you.” Lance didn’t even realise what he was saying before the words just came tumbling out of his mouth. “I, uh, didn’t-”

       “Sure, Lance. You haven’t been there, right?” If Lance tagging along bothered him at all, he definitely didn’t show it.

       “Yeah, I’ve never been.”

       “Alright, you both can head to Daibazaal. Have a safe trip, and let us know once you’ve landed.” Shiro got up and headed out with Pidge to hold the conference.

       “I’ll send you both to our pods, is there anything you need to get from your rooms first?” Coran asked them as the four of them left the dining room.

       “I’m good, I don’t think I’ll be needing anything from my room.” Lance answered.

       “Yeah, me neither. Most of my things are there anyway. By the way, you wanna come with us, Hunk?”

       “I’ll pass. Shay and her family are dropping by with a new crystal Coran asked for. I want to be here to greet them, and help fix it into the ship. You guys be safe, though.” Hunk pulled them both by their shoulders into a tight hug. “See you both tomorrow!” he called out as he headed towards their rooms. They waved at his retreating figure before quickly turning to follow Coran to the pods.

\-----

       Not even an hour had passed by the time they said goodbye to Coran and took off for Daibazaal, neither of them saying much to one another. Lance peeked at Keith from the corner of his eye, noticing the worry and tension in his features.

       “Hey buddy, you want me to take over flying?”

       “Huh? It’s alright, Lance.” Keith shrugged absentmindedly.

       “I can still pilot, you know? It’s not like I completely forgot about it just because I don’t go out to space anymore.”

       “Of course you can still pilot, I don’t doubt that. It’s just that you’ve never been to Daibazaal, you won’t know the way around.”

       “Then guide me until we reach there, we’ll trade places again once we enter it’s atmosphere. Okay?”

       Keith contemplated the suggestion before finally relenting and letting Lance take over flying the pod. “Just follow the mapped route, and keep your eyes out for anything in our way. We should reach in less than 2 hours.”

       “Sure.” Silence fell between them again, and Lance couldn’t help wondering what was on Keith’s mind. “You can talk to me about it, Keith. You don’t have to keep trying to deal with it on your own. And before you say it’s nothing, remember we’ve been inside each other’s heads and we’ve survived battles by working together.”

       “It’s just….” Keith released a heavy sigh, some of the tension leaving his body with it. “We just ended a war, Lance. Most parts of the universe haven’t even fully recovered from it, and now we’re expecting a new enemy? An enemy we don’t even know much about? One we can only expect to be worse than what we’ve faced before.”

       “Keith…”

       “The universe looks to us to protect them, but what if we fail this time? And even if we do win another war, what will happen when we’re no longer able to fight other future threats?”

       “We do what we can, and we do it together as a team. There’s never a guarantee if we’ll win or lose any of our battles, all we can really do is to give it our best. And if there will be future threats that we won’t be able to fight, then someone new will face the fight in our place, just as we did in place of the former paladins.”

       Keith kept quiet, though Lance could see he was calmer now. He caught Lance looking at him and returned the small smile, before turning to look ahead at their surroundings. The next few minutes of the journey was spent in a comfortable silence, neither of them saying anything.

       Lance was about to make conversation when he turned and saw that Keith had fallen asleep. He had a slight furrow in his brow even as he slept, which bothered Lance. It reminded him of his own struggles with resting during their last war, fear and uncertainty plaguing his sleep all too often.

_‘It’s alright buddy, we’ll make it through this too.’_ Lance could only hope he was right.


	12. Visit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thank you for reading this! Hope you enjoy it :D

“Hey, Keith, wake up.” Lance gently shook Keith’s shoulder to wake him. “Come on man, we’re here.”

       “Ugh, you let me sleep the whole way?” His voice was hoarse as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Lance shrugged in response as they traded places and Keith took over flying the pod to what looked like a castle.

       “You live in the castle?” Lance pointed to the large, sort of daunting building they were headed to. It looked regal, yet it wasn’t heavily decorated or gilded, which gave it a serious and strong vibe.

        “Hmm? Oh. Yeah, I do live there. But it’s not a castle.” Keith chuckled at Lance’s unconvinced expression, continuing his explanation. “With Zarkon, Honerva, and Lotor’s deaths, we don’t have a monarchy anymore. And you know, the whole Kral Zera thing was switched to actual democracy, instead of fighting for the position of ruler. So, that isn’t a castle, it’s more like a central command or government building with living quarters.”

       “How do you decide who gets to live there?”

       “Well, anyone working towards rebuilding Daibazaal is welcomed to stay there, which right now actually means anyone is welcome. But most of the population actually prefer building their own homes all over the planet, a place to call their own. Most of the Blades and the active command team live here though, because we move around a lot on missions and work.”

       “Oh… that’s pretty cool. It’s still a castle if you ask me.” Lance chuckled. Keith only smiled in response as they got closer to the building and finally landed the pod in the parking bay. Lance looked around and noticed how vacant the place was, Keith and him being the only people there. “Is it always this empty?”

       “It’s usually pretty busy, but it’s already past midnight now. Everyone’s probably at home or resting somewhere.” They both headed out of the pod and made their way to Krolia and Kosmo, who were now standing by the building’s entrance. Not even halfway there, Kosmo excitedly bounded up to Keith, nearly tackling him to the ground.

       “Woah there boy, I miss you too.” Keith chuckled at him, petting him playfully before he went to nuzzle Lance’s side.

       “What are they feeding you? You’re as big as the horses we have back home.” Lance laughed, giving him the same treatment Keith did.

       “Keith, Lance.” Krolia greeted them briefly with a smile, before her expression turned serious and she began leading the way along the large hallways. “I was in the conference with Shiro and Pidge, orders have been given and all outposts are now on high alert. I understand that both of you, along with the rest of the team will be leaving soon for Oriande, and that the plans thereafter are uncertain.”

       Keith responded to her, and they began a conversation that Lance only paid half attention to, his hand still subconsciously petting Kosmo by his side. They came to a stop in front of a set of doors, which opened to reveal a bedroom. Lance had expected the bedrooms here to have a serious and clinical feel to it, much like the Galra themselves, so he was surprised by the odd warmth and comfort of the room.

       Keith cleared his throat, and Lance noticed that their conversation had ended. He also noticed Krolia hiding a few snickers and that both of them were looking at him with small smirks. _‘Anyone who has any doubt that they’re related should definitely see them like this.’_

       “I was just letting you know that this is your room for the night. I’ll be in this room,” Keith pointed to the room opposite Lance’s, “and Krolia will be in that room, three doors down.”

       “Please make yourself comfortable, Lance. I wish your first visit here would have been under better circumstances.” Krolia reached out to pat his shoulder, looking at him with the gentlest look he’s ever seen not directed to Keith. It reminded him that the Galra were not all aloof and critical, and they had feelings just like everyone else. “If what they have told me is true, then you have a very important journey ahead. Physically, mentally… and maybe even emotionally. I wish you the best and know that you have all of us supporting you.”

       “Thanks, Krolia. We’ll do our best to find out what we need to on this trip, and keep the universe safe.” Lance mumbled, the atmosphere making him feel grateful yet awkward at the same time.

       Krolia smiled and nodded, turning to address Keith as well. “You both should rest tonight, I’ll help you settle the preparations here tomorrow morning. If there’s anything you need Lance, there’s a communicator by your bed. You can use it to summon the sentries or assistants for help.”

       They exchanged their goodbyes before Krolia left for her own bedroom, leaving the two boys and Kosmo in the hallway.

       “Well… goodnight, Keith.”

       “Goodnight, Lance. Come on, Kosmo.” Kosmo looked at Keith, before turning around and head butting Lance into his room. “Hey!” Keith called out in surprise before the door closed on him, his space wolf settling comfortably on a literally floored Lance.

       “Guess you’re rooming with me tonight, buddy.” Kosmo chirped happily in response, already pacing the room to find his sleeping spot. “Let’s see if they have pyjamas I could borrow here. They should right? I mean the Altean castle has them for visitors, and Earth has them too.” He found what looked like a closet in one corner of the room, opening it and pulling one of the hanging garments out. _‘These could be pyjamas?’_

       The other clothes hanging inside were similar, a few almost identical, but the fabrics they were made of were different. Lance figured what he was putting on had to be the pyjamas, they were the softest amongst all the clothes there. _‘They do look like they could be under armour though.’_ He looked as his reflection in the bathroom mirror, and decided it didn’t really matter. He was comfortable, and he was ready for bed anyways. 

       He climbed into bed and wished Kosmo goodnight, trying to stop himself from thinking too much of the day’s events. It wasn’t easy, a lot of things weighed heavy in his mind. A new enemy from another reality, possible Altean DNA, another war to fight, leaving Earth without a proper goodbye. _‘No use in worrying now, I’ll call home tomorrow and talk to everyone. Everything else can be worried about tomorrow too.’_

       Most of his concerns were successfully pushed aside and he was just about to fall asleep when he felt Kosmo nuzzle his hand. “What’s wrong? Can’t sleep?” The wolf whined in response, Lance trying to comfort him with pets. “I bet you just miss Keith.”

       What happened next was terribly disorienting. In just a blink, Lance went from sitting up on his bed to falling on his butt on Keith’s bedroom floor. Both boys howled in shock, Keith with his blade ready pointed towards Lance. “Oh, it’s just you two.” He relaxed and sat down on the floor opposite Lance, laughing quietly at his confused expression.

       “Just you two?! Your wolf teleports me here without warning, and that’s all you have to say, Kogane? I have never been through that, I’m still trying to deal with it. Stop laughing at me.” He ended up laughing too, despite how bewildered he was by the whole experience. Even Kosmo seemed to enjoy the situation.

       “Yeah, he did that to me a lot too when we first settled in. I usually ended up in my lion, the training deck, or wherever Krolia was in the building. After a while, I figured he was doing it to try and comfort me whenever he thought I needed it.” Keith started patting Kosmo, who had decided to innocently settle between them, Lance subconsciously mirroring the action on the giant wolf.

       “I guess that makes him a good boy, huh? Making sure people are okay.” Lance was talking straight to Kosmo now, who he could swear looked almost completely smug at all the attention and praise he was getting.

       “Yeah, he’s the best boy.” He whispered it so fondly that Lance was sure he hadn’t meant to say it out loud. “Oh, you found the pyjamas? I didn’t think you were gonna use them, but its good you found them easily.”

       “Easily? This was identical to two other outfits in the closet. I still wasn’t sure what I was wearing when I got to bed.”

       “Hah, yeah. One of it is casual wear, the other is training wear. Redesigning the clothes aren’t really a priority yet, since we have to rebuild the planet and stuff.”

       “Ohh, okay. Makes sense.” They continued spoiling Kosmo with their attention, when Lance finally realised something. “Why are you in Earth pyjamas??”

       Keith looked down at his t-shirt and sweatpants combo, shrugging as he explained. “I’m always wearing something like that every day, it’s nice to at least wear something from Earth every once in a while. I was about to go offer you a spare set when you suddenly got here.”

       “Oh. Well, it’s okay. This is surprisingly cosy, so I’m fine with it.”

       “That’s good.” A yawn immediately followed his short reply, making Lance release a yawn too. They both took it as a sign to call it a night, Lance heading to his room and Keith to his bed.

       “Goodnight, Mullet. You keep Kosmo for the night, he misses you.”

       “Alright, thanks Lance. Goodnight.”

\-----

       “OOF!” Whatever heavy weight that landed on Lance definitely did the job of waking him up, nearly giving him a heart attack in the process. The soft long fur gave him a clue to what exactly decided to give him this sort of wake up call, nudging him up and out of bed.

       “Alright alright, I’m up already. Did Keith get you to do this?” Lance groaned, making his way to the bathroom to freshen up for the day, grimacing at the spot where Kosmo just disappeared from.  He got ready quickly, not knowing what the time was or how long he’d slept for, just that it was obviously daytime. Daibazaal’s daytime was actually pretty similar to most other planets’ he’d seen, and Lance wondered why he expected it to be different. _‘I thought it would be warmer, more orange instead of blue skies.’_

       Putting on yesterday’s clothes, he finally took a moment to check his reflection. He looked as tired as he felt, but his marks had a faint glow to them that he’d never seen before. _‘Hmm. That should interest Coran.’_ Thinking of Coran reminded him immediately of his DNA test results, Lance running straight for Keith’s room.

       In his hurry, he completely ignored his surroundings and ended up barrelling straight into Keith, sending both of them to the ground.

       “What the hell, Lance?” Keith sounded winded as he got up, and pulled Lance up with him. He was suited up in his Marmoran armour, clearly awake longer than Lance was. His annoyance gave way to worry as he took in his friend’s frantic state. “What’s wrong? What do you need?”

       “Coran! Has- has he contacted?” he heard how borderline hysterical his voice was and tried to calm down, he needed to explain to Keith.

       “Yes, he checked in earlier. No new updates, and preparations for Oriande are going smoothly. Did something happen? Was it another dream?”

       He had managed to compose himself enough to explain, though his tone still held a hint of urgency. “Not another dream, and nothing really happened. I’m just expecting some news…. About the DNA results.”

       “Oh. I didn’t know you took the test.”

       “Yeah, figured there’s no harm in finding out. By the way, thanks for sending your wolf to wake me up in the morning, it was great, really.” Sarcasm dripped in the mention of his cosmic wolf wake up call.

       “I didn’t send him, he must’ve went on his own.” Keith shrugged, grinning at Lance. “And it’s almost noon, not morning anymore.”

       “Why-?”

       “You looked like you needed the sleep, and there wasn’t much to do anyways for the preparations. I spoke to my unit, handed Acxa temporary command. Ran through some stuff with Krolia, and even talked to a few people about the Galra thing.”

       “What Galra thing?”

       “Uh… the whole turning Galra thing.” He took Lance’s curious look as a cue to continue explaining. “Turns out they don’t have extensive research on it, but there are enough half-Galra around for there to be a few recorded studies on form changing. So, it’s not impossible for me to physically turn Galra, but it’s not exactly easy either.”

       “You would need to train it.” It was Keith’s turn to be curious, and Lance shared his take on it. “If I do have Altean DNA, then it makes sense to try and train using it. The same should apply to you, I guess?”

       “Yeah, I guess.” They started walking down the hall, Keith leading the way and Lance following without question. “I don’t think I’d ever actually need to turn Galra. It’s just that….”

       “It would be nice to know you can, in case you ever actually needed to. Yeah, I get how you feel.”

       “I’m assuming it feels more necessary to you. I wouldn’t worry about it too much though, you always manage to pull through, Lance.” It was said in such an offhand matter-of-fact way, as if there never was doubt about it, that Lance was thrown for a loop.

_‘He has a weirdly casual way of complementing people. He probably doesn’t even realise it.’_

       Keith turned to look at Lance and pointed at the doorway they stopped in front of. “Grab a bite before we leave?”

       “Sounds good. And hey, if I can do the whole chameleon thing, we could train it together.”

       Lance was on the receiving end of a very flat look, before Keith huffed out a few laughs, leaving him oddly satisfied.  “Alright Lance, we’ll figure it out together.”


	13. Splotches

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry this took longer than it was supposed to, but life happens. Thank you as always, for reading this far!

Keith and Lance arrived to a very busy Altea, almost everyone seemed occupied with the preparations which were going full swing. They were headed to Coran’s study when they bumped into the man himself.

       “Oh good, you’re both back.” Coran greeted them hurriedly, signalling for them to follow him as he started walking ahead.

       “Yeah, we just got here. What can we do to help?” Keith asked, looking around and trying to figure out where they were headed. Lance was doing pretty much the same, though he was more curious about what his DNA results were.

       “Actually, there are a few things I would like to work on with you two before you help with the preparations.” He had brought them to what looked like a large circular solarium. The walls around them were made of glass, sunlight shining in the surprisingly breezy space and bouncing off of the shiny polished floor. This room didn’t look like any part of the castle-ship that they’d seen before, and appeared to be simpler than most parts of the current castle. The floor looked like it was made of marble and stone and there was no furniture, it was empty aside from the three of them standing.

       “There are a few things that both of you need to know, and decide on. Would you prefer if I did this separately, or is this fine?” Coran’s tone was serious, but there wasn’t any urgency or tension in it which left both boys confused.

       “Together is fine? I mean, I’m okay with it.” Lance spoke up, looking at Keith’s similarly bewildered expression.

       “Yeah, I’m fine with it too.” Keith shrugged, wanting the conversation to move on faster. Sure, they were probably going to find out about Lance’s genetics, he just didn’t understand why it was something he needed to know. Or what he could possibly even need to decide on.

       “Good. I’ll start with you, Lance.” He addressed Lance with a proud smile, causing him to stand up straighter and hold his breath in anticipation. Lance peeked at Keith from the corner of his eye and saw that he was smiling too, his curiosity piqued at what Coran was about to tell them. “It seems that you do in fact have Altean DNA, Lance. It has managed to synthesize with your human genetics, creating a very unique strand that we’ve never come across. Our scientist would like to study it in depth with you, that is if you don’t mind.”

       Lance couldn’t decide how he felt at the moment. On one hand, he felt relieved to know that their theory was right, and he may actually be a Chosen like Allura was. On the other hand though, he’s having a hard time wrapping his head around the fact that his DNA was essentially altered and he was going to be studied. The only response he could muster was a shrug and a nod.

       Coran then turned to Keith and started talking to him, though half of Keith’s attention was focused on gauging the emotions playing out on Lance’s face. “… we’d also like to run some tests on you too, if you’re alright with it.” Was all he caught of Coran’s words.

       “Sorry, can you repeat that again?” He gave his full attention then, whatever he heard throwing him for a loop. Even Lance was paying attention now, wondering why Keith needed to be tested too.

       “Krolia and Kolivan told me about your questions regarding your Galra side during our conference just now. Since they don’t have records on Human-Galra hybrid children, yours would also be a study that’s the first of it’s kind. We could perhaps find out what potential your Galra side has.”

       “I see.” Unlike Lance, Keith seemed to have a completely calm reaction to the suggestion of being studied. “Thanks, Coran. It’d be nice to figure it out too.”

       “Alright then, last decision. Lance, would you like to try some training on your Altean side? We won’t include it in our research if you’re uncomfortable with it, and you can just try it for the sake of knowing your own capabilities.” Coran looked at him gently, giving Lance the freedom to choose his next move.

 _‘Right, we possibly have a war to end. No time to freak out.’_ If his training ends up a success, then he’ll have one more thing to bring to the fight. “Yeah, training would be great. And I don’t mind it being part of the research.” Lance felt determined, he wanted to know what he could do, what Allura had left with him beyond the marks on his face. “Thanks Coran.”

       “I’m happy to hear that, I’ll be leaving you in the capable hands of Tavo while I take Keith to our labs. You may remember him as one of the Alteans piloting Honerva’s beasts, but now he’s part of our research team.” Coran nodded to the man standing by the doorway, who then began approaching them.

       Lance remembered him, he was the Altean pilot that had first agreed to help them by divulging Honerva’s plans. He greeted Lance and Keith, and spoke privately with Coran for a while.

       “Hey, you’ll be okay?” Keith asked quietly, nudging his elbow against Lance’s.

       “Huh? Oh, yeah yeah. Of course, I’ll be okay. You forgetting who you’re talking to, Kogane?” Lance teased, nudging him back. They continued their banter, the situation a lot less stressful than Lance imagined it would have been. He was thankful that Keith took the whole thing calmly and seemed pretty relaxed, it made him feel like he didn’t need to worry over all the little details.

       “Okay gentlemen, Keith and I will be leaving now. Lance, I hope you and Tavo have a good session. Feel free to discuss any concerns or ideas with each other, and contact me if you need anything. We’ll meet again during lunch.” Coran spoke up, before leaving with Keith by his side.

       Which left Lance with Tavo.

_‘So, what now?’_

       Tavo broke the silence by facing Lance directly, a small smile on his serious face as he started talking. “Coran has briefed me on the situation, and it is an honour to be able to work with you on this, Paladin Lance. Please let me know if there’s anything you need.”

       “Thank you Tavo, you can just call me Lance though. I can’t wait to start our training.” He attempted to mask his nerves by being friendly and confident. And if Tavo saw through the façade, he was nice enough not to point it out.

       “For today, we’ll try something basic. I imagine this revelation can be a little overwhelming, so the training can start simple if that’s alright with you.” Lance didn’t know much about this man, but he already liked him.

       “That’s alright with me. Let’s start.”

       It turns out that even the most basic of skills need to be really practiced. They were working on the chameleon abilities of the Alteans, a skill that most of them learn as kids. Even the colony kept up with a few of these traditions and lessons were passed down through the generations. Lance was trying his best to turn his right hand into a different colour, and Tavo was patiently guiding him through it. More than an hour passed with no success, and Lance was beginning to lose his motivation.

       “Maybe this is something that I just can’t do! I can’t even imagine my hand changing colour!” He called out in frustration, another five minutes wasted staring at his hand with no results.

       “It might help if you imagine a colour that you favour, and focus all your energy imagining your hand in that colour.” Tavo was amazingly patient, keeping his cool and continuing to believe in Lance even when he was about to give up. “We should also take a short break, rest while I go get us a drink.”

       Lance just shrugged in response, too stressed to even talk. How was he supposed to focus when this whole experience has proven to be more aggravating than he was prepared for. His patience was running thin, and it was borderline about to snap. He took a deep breath to calm down, a memory suddenly flashing through the fog in his mind. _‘What was it Shiro used to say? Patience something something?’_

       He tried to remember that memory, it was advice Shiro used to give them when they began their journey as paladins and had to face particularly frustrating challenges. _‘Aha! Patience yields focus!’_

       That’s right, it was solid advice and it helped them get through some difficult situations. He just needed to be a little more patient so that he can focus better. Lance took a moment and a few deep breaths to completely calm down, his patience growing and the frustration leaving him slowly. Finally, he closed his eyes and focused on his hand changing colour. The image was clear in his mind and he concentrated on it with everything he had.

       “You did it!” He opened his eyes at the sound of Tavo’s surprised exclamation.

       “I did it?” True enough, Lance looked to his hand and saw his tanned skin had splotches of blue on it, randomly marking him from his wrist to his fingertips. “I did it! I’m doing it, my hand is blue!”

       They both celebrated the success, despite the outcome not being exactly what Lance pictured. It was still something, it was proof that the Altean DNA in him wasn’t stagnant and he could learn to use it. It meant he had potential that he didn’t even realise until now.

       They practiced a few more times until he managed to turn his whole right hand a solid blue the way he pictured it in his head. Tavo noticed the exhaustion beginning to build up in Lance and decided to end the training then, with plans of another session later in the evening.

       Lance thanked him for his time and guidance, and the two bid their goodbyes and went their separate ways. As he headed to his room, he finally noticed how tired he actually was. The excitement had kept it at bay, but now that he had some experience with it, the tiredness made itself known and he definitely needed a short nap. Tavo had told him that it would be easier the more he practiced it, and it would even become like second nature with time.

       He laid on his bed and held out his hand, watching the colour change again before returning back to normal. The sense of achievement caused him to grin to himself as he slowly drifted to sleep.


	14. Begin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firstly, I am so sorry this took so long, university is really running me ragged. I will do my best to try and at least update every chapter sooner. Second, I just want to say thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this, and leave kudos and comments. I sincerely appreciate all of it.

The previous day’s preparations went smoothly, Lance’s training with Tavo in the evening went better than the first, and everything seemed to be going their way. The only thing left on his to-do list was to call home and let them know he’ll be away for a while. Everything that went on yesterday had left him too busy to make the call, and when he finally had free time, he was too exhausted to even remember.

       So it was a surprise to everyone when Coran made the announcement over breakfast. “Our preparations are almost done, only the battlecruiser is left to be completed by the engineers. We’ll be able to leave for Oriande tomorrow morning.” He paused, his serious expression melting into a warm smile before he continued, “Since all of you had worked so hard and there isn’t much left to do today, I took the liberty of inviting your family and close friends to spend the day with all of you before we leave. They should all be arriving here soon.”

       The rest of breakfast was spent exchanging excited chatter about meeting their friends and family and discussing the final details of their journey. Time seemed to pass by in a blur once they were with their loved ones, the uncertainty of their journey ahead driving their need to cherish every little moment they had with each other.

       It felt like a just a blink of an eye and now they were done with dinner, the day with family coming to an end.  Lance found himself standing off to the side of the large group that had made their way to Allura’s statue, tuning out the many conversations going on around him. His mother had spoken to him privately earlier in the day as she held him tight in a hug, her words echoing in his mind. _‘Come home safely, mi niño. We’ll all be waiting for you.’_ Guilt at her words had left him sputtering out apologies, remorseful of the worry he would undoubtedly cause his family again. She had cut off his apology with a tender look of understanding which had left him speechless, clinging onto her with tears prickling in his eyes. He wanted to promise her that he’d be back home again, that she didn’t need to agonise over his safety. But the bitter truth was that he couldn’t do that, there really was no guarantee and he couldn’t leave her with an empty promise and misplaced hopes.

       His thoughts were interrupted by Veronica who had nudged him with her elbow. “You ready for another adventure?”

       “Is anyone ever actually ready?” Lance retorted, chuckling at his sister’s unamused eye roll. “I am ready, especially now that I got to see everyone.”

       “Yeah, it’s great to see you off too. I heard from Shiro about your Altean side, why didn’t you say anything to us?” Her question was gentle, curious instead of accusing.

       “The family doesn’t need added worry over something that we haven’t fully understood yet. I’ll let them know when I’m back, hopefully I’ll know better about it by then.”

       He saw the acceptance grow on her face, and was grateful that she respected his choice. “I also heard about Keith.” Veronica looked at Lance intently, catching the way his jaw tightened and his eyes grew dark. She hesitated to continue, but her need to know outweighed her reservations. “Is he alright now? I wanted to ask him myself, but there wasn’t really a right moment to.”

       Lance’s eyes immediately fell on Keith at the mention of his name. He was having a conversation with Kolivan and Sam a short distance away, Kosmo towering close behind him. “Yeah… He’s fine now. The healing pod did its job.” His voice came out strained, the image of Keith impaled already seared in his memory.

       “They mean business, this new threat. Acxa told me about how hostile they were, but it didn’t really stick with me until I saw the footage of the fight just now.” Veronica’s voice grew hard, anger simmering beneath her words. She turned to face Lance, her expression serious, but her tone was gentler. A plea, a reminder, and a warning all in one. “Try to be safe if you cross paths with them. Don’t let them hurt any of you.”

       He could only nod in response, knowing that it was impossible to make that kind of promise. “You be safe too, Ronnie. Keep our home safe.” Both siblings didn’t continue the conversation from there on, content on simply being in each other’s presence before the unpredictable amount of time they would be apart.

\-----

       Lance had a sudden feeling of being dissociated with his surroundings. He stood in one of the cruiser’s hallways, dazed by the image of himself reflected on the shiny wall panel. He was suited up in black Altean armour, similar to what he wore as a paladin but lighter and sleeker, looking more like he was walking around in just under armour than a full suit. _‘We’re not expecting anything too dangerous happening on this mission that the cruiser can’t handle. And these suits are tougher than you might think!’_ Somehow, Lance found it hard to believe that he’d be protected in this suit, despite what Coran had to say about it. He did like the small little details that were done in blue on it though, especially the small metallic blue Voltron symbol over his left chest.

       His dissociation was a result of seeing himself fully dressed in his gear, and his brain catching up to the fact that they had left Altea and were now on the way to Oriande. The goodbyes exchanged early that morning and their send off by loved ones were fuzzy memories in the haze of Lance’s mind, and he was still processing how he felt about the beginning of what could be a life changing space trip. _‘All the space trips so far have been life changing.’_ He grimaced at the realisation.

       He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he missed the sound of approaching footsteps, jumping in surprise at the tap on his shoulder.

       Keith’s immediate reaction was concern, but laughter bubbled out of him instead as he caught the comically startled look on Lance’s face. A few chuckles escaped Lance, even though he felt weirdly embarrassed at being caught off guard. He was about to say something, anything really, just to distract himself from the embarrassment, when Keith finally spoke up.

       “I’m sorry, didn’t mean to surprise you. I was headed to the bridge, and you were just standing here looking at yourself.”

       “I, uh, wasn’t-”

       “Yeah, you look good in the new suit. Didn’t expect you to be so vain about it though.” Keith was still chuckling as he spoke. It was only after a few moments of Lance’s silence that he seemed to realise what he’d said, his cheeks warming a faint pink. “Wait, I meant-”

       “You think I look good, Kogane?” Lance was smirking now, enjoying how easily the tables have turned. Albeit he couldn’t admit just how flustered the offhand compliment had left him, or how he felt a small spark of satisfaction hearing it.

       “Seems like you’re fine then.” He shook his head at Lance’s response, quickly continuing his walk to the bridge. Keith heard the small laugh and footsteps before slowing down to let Lance catch up to him. They walked quietly together, bumping shoulders and chuckling at nothing. It was about the fourth time Keith caught Lance glancing sideways at him that he spoke up. “What is it, Lance?”

       The boy in question had a sheepish grin, self-conscious for a moment at how personal this conversation could end up going. “It’s nothing, I just figured you might actually be worried about me because I was zoning out back there. There’s nothing to worry about, I’m really fine.”

       “I’m not worrying, I’m just a little concerned.” Keith replied softly, eyes meeting Lance’s only briefly enough to see his raised eyebrows. “Before you say it’s the same thing, I’ll let you know that it’s not. I’m not worried, because I know you can handle a lot. I’m concerned, because _you_ know you can.”

       “Isn’t it a good thing that we both know?”

       “Well yeah, sure. But it would be better for you to know that it’s okay if you can’t handle everything. We’re starting our journey to Oriande, which is most likely only the beginning of whatever it is we’re going to have to go through. You and I both know how unpredictable things can get, and it’s probably going to be tough on everyone of us if there really is another war to fight.” They were both slowing down, taking their time as they talked. “I don’t know for sure, but I imagine the whole situation with leaving home, gaining some Altean knowledge, and calling back the lions isn’t an easy burden to carry alone. It’s okay for you to let us know if you need support, even if it’s just someone to talk to. You don’t have to feel solely responsible for any of it, you have us and we’ll be sharing that weight with you. You’re strong on your own, but we’re all stronger together, right?”

       Keith stopped walking when he didn’t hear Lance following him and turned to see him standing a few feet away, his eyes staring intently at the ground.

       “Lance?”

       “I was overwhelmed before this.” He cleared his throat before looking up and locking eyes with Keith, a sad smile on his face. “I didn’t know if I had it in me, and I didn’t completely believe that I could possibly do whatever Allura did. But things happened, I got a little reassurance and now I feel better. But you’re right, we’re stronger as a team, and if things do get too difficult, I know I can rely on all of you for support.”

       They exchanged smiles, both with faint pink tingeing their cheeks as they continued walking.

       “What happened? That gave you reassurance.”

       Lance looked at Keith and realised that he hasn’t told anyone about his training sessions and progress with Tavo. He lifted his right hand and looked at it, figuring it would be satisfying to just show it instead of explaining. So, he simply brought his hand closer to Keith and said, “This happened.”

       He had expected shock, and maybe even Keith recoiling away as his hand turned blue. Instead, Keith looked at his hand with a mix of fascination, understanding, and something that looked oddly like pride.

       “That’s really cool, Lance.”

       Lance shrugged, not knowing how else to respond to that. Their conversation was cut short by sound of Coran’s voice playing through the ship’s speaker. “Please prepare for a wormhole jump. We should be near Oriande’s location in less than 10 doboshes. Paladins, please report to the bridge before we arrive.”

       They both nodded to each other, and hurried their pace to the bridge. Their journey was really about to begin.


	15. Tested

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update, and thank you again for reading this far! Kudos, comments, and any feedback will be greatly appreciated. I really want to know how I can improve, so feel free to let me know any way I can :D

The white hole felt different for some reason, a little more welcoming than Lance remembered it being the first time they were there. Well, it wasn’t as if he was welcomed there the first time anyways, or even after that once Honerva made it her base. But it didn’t feel as simple as that, instead he felt a connection to it that was calling out to him and pulling him in.

       “Lance…” He turned to answer Pidge’s call, realising how quiet the room had gotten, everyone’s attention on him. Even Kosmo had his eyes trained on Lance from his spot beside Pidge. Her eyes were wide as she gestured to her cheeks, awe and curiosity clear in her expression as she said only two words to him. “Your marks.”

       “My marks?” His hands immediately went to touch them, trying to figure out what Pidge was talking about. It was when his eyes landed on Coran who was smiling proudly, did things start falling into place.

       “You truly are a Chosen, Lance.” Coran’s words shook him, yet he was pinned in place and unable to say or do anything in response.

       Everyone was waiting with baited breath for some sort of response from him, but all he could manage was a nod before he started walking towards the door. Shiro and Coran both gave Lance a pat on the back and some advice for his journey as he passed by them. A few steps later, he found himself sandwiched between Hunk and Pidge in a crushing group hug, the both of them wishing him luck. The Altean crew murmured their well wishes as he continued walking, reaching the doors and finding Keith standing by them.

       Lance had expected some sort of banter or even a few wise words from Keith, but instead he got a nod to follow along as Keith began walking away from the bridge. Lance caught up to him easily and allowed him to lead the way, his nervousness and excitement making it hard to navigate himself to the transport crafts.

       “So, are you ready?” Lance glanced at Keith from the corner of his eye, his casual tone contradicting how serious his expression was.

       “Hah, as ready as I can be.” He was going for confident, but he was pretty sure the pitch of his voice gave him away. Keith let out a small laugh but didn’t comment on it, leaving the rest of their walk to be silent.

       They had arrived at the launch bay where Lance’s helmet and transport were already prepared for him, two Alteans standing by the bay’s controls. Lance felt as if there were things he needed to say to Keith, he just didn’t know what. Or why even. Keith looked like he was struggling to say something too.

       Lance decided to bite the bullet and let his mouth run loose. “Well, thanks for the send off. I’ll do my best to bring back useful information.”

       “Oh, you’re welcome. And don’t worry about bringing back anything from Oriande, just get back safe.”

       “Aww, so you do care.” Lance couldn’t miss an opportunity to annoy Keith, especially since a small part of him was low-key worried that this might be his last chance to.

       And he got the exact reaction he was hoping for, with Keith’s flat stare and even flatter “Goodbye, Lance.” They were both chuckling to themselves as Lance got on his ride and waited for launch.

       The short moments waiting while the engineers made their final checks allowed some of the stress and nerves to resurface, self-doubt rearing its ugly head. He turned to see what they were doing, and was surprised to see Keith with them on the other side of the glass wall. His attention was on Lance and the moment their eyes met, he gave him a determined smile. Just like that, he felt better. Lance returned the smile immediately, a strange sort of calm blanketing him as he finally got the green light and launched himself toward the giant white hole.

\-----

       The trials he went through so far weren’t exactly how he remembered Allura telling them. He only had to face the White Lion as he entered the white hole, and Oriande itself wasn’t exactly how it was before. Where the temple-esque castle once stood was now only a simple clearing, small patches of pink juniberry like flowers growing sporadically around it.

       He walked towards the centre of the clearing, looking around for the guardians that would present him with his second trial but nothing happened. The sound of movement behind him had him turning around in surprise, body stance defensive. It took him a moment to process what he was seeing before he dropped his defences, warily eyeing the lion that was sitting a few feet in front of him.

       “Blue?” It was surreal to see her this way, in her astral form looking down over him. He took a few hesitant steps towards her, stopping short at the appearance of the red, green, and yellow lions. The black lion was the last to arrive, completing the circle and thus trapping Lance in the middle.

       His attempts to get near any of the lions were met with growls that were more hostile than he had ever heard from any of them. “Hey Blue, it’s me, Lancey Lance. You remember me right?”

       Nothing. He still felt her energy, but it wasn’t the same. She was guarded and he wasn’t allowed in. Red was no different, in fact all the lions were shutting him out. _‘How am I supposed to call them back like this? I can’t even get Blue to respond to me.’_

       Lance decided he was just going to storm up to his lion and demand her attention, screw the consequences. His plans were interrupted by the sound of soft padded steps behind him leisurely making their way to him in the centre. Turning to the source had him face to face with the white lion who had his focus zeroed in on Lance. He had stopped a few feet away from him, emitting an aura that was neither welcoming nor threatening and a quick glance around showed the five lions appearing to be slightly bowed towards the both of them.

       It was a tense few moments of silence before it dawned on him what was going on. He was being tested for his worthiness by the white lion, the guardian of ancient Altean knowledge. Allura had told them how she had passed her test which had deemed her worthy, but it was still a resolution that didn’t resonate within Lance. She was willing to sacrifice herself to gain knowledge, something that he didn’t understand and was definitely unwilling to even consider. The thought of leaving his family, his friends, and his future behind made it impossible to see how he could make the exchange.

       Except, now he understood. “I get it now.” He faced the white lion and sat cross-legged opposite it. “I had always thought that it was ridiculous of her to be willing to give her life for some ancient knowledge, that there was no way it’s value could be worth her own life. But I get it now.” Lance took a steadying breath. Whatever he says next will be weighed by the guardian and he would have to face the judgement with the lions around him bearing witness. The warmth of understanding and conviction flowing through him outweighed the fear and doubt. He would say his piece and accept whatever the verdict would be, whatever the consequences he would have to face.

       “I’m not prepared to give my life for ancient alchemic enlightenment.” The white lion stood up and bared his teeth. Lance allowed himself to let the fear burn under his skin for a second before he closed his eyes and pictured his loved ones, their memory putting out every last flicker of uncertainty. “But if it would save countless other lives, I would willingly surrender my own.”

       The rumbling caused by the lions’ roars shook the ground around him. Lance refused to open his eyes and the sound of fast approaching steps made him clench them closed even tighter. His breath was held in anticipation for what’s to come next, fear and excitement warring inside him for top priority. There was a flash of silence, before a searing pain ran through his body from head to toe. _‘Is this what getting struck by lightning feels like? '_

 Pain unlike anything he'd felt before coursed through him, setting him on fire and leaving him cold all at once. _'Guess I failed the test…’_

       He knew he was now laying on his back, but ironically his eyes were too heavy to open and confirm it. He needed to get up and check for injuries, he needed to try and survive the guardian, he needed to go home.

       But there was nothing he could do except lay there as his body grew numb and his thoughts followed suit. He was drifting into the darkness.

       “Lance!”


End file.
